10 Comments
Earlier this afternoon, Bwog made our way to the fifth floor of Lerner for a discussion with Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota. While Senator Klobuchar didn’t exactly draw Jumbotron-sized crowds (the audience numbered less than fifty), the always smiling senator made a gracious effort to shake everyone’s hand and learn their names.
She began her talk by introducing her family, and described her initial move in her “husband’s small Saturn” to our nation’s capital after she was elected to the Senate. Because this was not “nonpartisan” like Obamacain, she then railed against John McCain and President Bush for allowing financial deregulation on Wall Street, which she blamed for America’s current economic problems. “There was too much greed and too little fear on Wall Street, and that’s the situation we’re in today,” she said. She also sided with both Obama and McCain and endorsed the return of ROTC to campus.
It was only when the name “Sarah Palin” was mentioned that Senator Klobuchar’s smile disappeared: “If you want four more years of President Bush’s failed policies, of failure on the war, on the environment, on energy independence, on healthcare, then you should vote for McCain and Palin. I think the country will make the right choice, elect Barack and put the country in a new direction.”
She ended her discussion by declaring that she was a big fan of fellow Minnesotan Prince. The event felt more like an interactive, engaging seminar than a one-way lecture. Bwog asked the Senator if she had any aspirations for the presidency someday; she replied, “I’m happy right where I am in my day job, but thanks for the compliment.”
– Will Leonard
Loading …
10 Comments
@I doubt you’ll find many politicians on either side who’ll say they think it’s okay that Columbia bans ROTC from recruiting on campus because they’ll probably be called anti-American.
@love minnesota Yay Amy! A great Minnesotan
@love CPU Since Bwog failed to mention it:
This event was put together by the Columbia Political Union.
@hahahaha hah
@she said that if we allow other businesses we don’t necessarily agree with on campus, shouldn’t the same apply to the military?
@THATS what I like to hear! At least one liberal has it right… geez.
@Like Obama, she appeared unaware of the reason ROTC isn’t allowed back. She mentioned that companies with whom many students disagree are allowed to recruit on campus, which of course would not be true for any company that refused to allow openly gay people to participate.
@plausible Her unawareness led her to what is a very plausible truth. It was the original reason why ROTC was kicked off of campus, in any case.
@The military … isn’t like “any company”. Our military owns an exceptional place in American society. At the very least, ROTC has as much right and reason to be part of Columbia as religions and a women’s college, none of which could be at Columbia if held to the same criteria used to bar ROTC.
Everyone who supports ROTC at Columbia, including Obama and Klobuchar, is aware of Columbia’s 2005 stated reason (as opposed to original 1969 reason) for barring ROTC at Columbia. However, only anti-ROTC people at Columbia are isolated enough to believe that the lone argument against ROTC at Columbia trumps the greater reasons for ROTC at Columbia.
You don’t have to be for DADT in order to be for ROTC at Columbia. Almost all Columbia ROTC advocates oppose DADT and believe ROTC at Columbia will help change the law. In the meantime, Columbia’s non-discrimination policy (which, fyi, includes military status) can easily coexist with ROTC. In fact, President Bollinger oversaw ROTC at the University of Michigan, and he’ll do so again at Columbia.
@did Nobody ask her why she’s okay with Don’t Ask Don’t Tell?