America's Youth Are Not An Interest Group, They Are Our Future

What did you all think about last night's debate? I thought McCain looked like a beached squid. His answers were incoherent talking points that barely addressed the questions, his attacks fell flat and seemed just plain mean and calculating, and the man had zero control over his facial expressions. That split screen was brutal and I'm sure we'll see a repeat performance this Saturday on SNL.

I thought the highlight of the debate (from a youth perspective) came at the very end, when Obama said the quote I used as the title of this post:

And I also have to disagree on Sen. McCain's record when it comes to college accessibility and affordability.

Recently his key economic adviser was asked about why he didn't seem to have some specific programs to help young people go to college and the response was, well, you know, we can't give money to every interest group that comes along.

I don't think America's youth are interest groups, I think they're our future.

Youth may not be an interest group, but we are a constituency. As such, I thought this debate did a much better job than the last in including us in the discussion - particularly on the issue of education, which got a lot of play last night.

In a search of the transcript, I found 14 instances in which the candidates mentioned young people or directly addressed an issue through a "youth" frame. This was compared to only 6 instances in the previous debate. Both candidates each made a mention of youth 7 times, but I found Obama's answers to be much more substantive, particularly around the need for more education. Listening to Obama, I got a picture of youth as a group of enormous potential that needs more of a leg up to reach that potential. His references to youth were couched in terms like "investment." By contrast, McCain's mentions of youth seemed to portray us as victims - of the drug war, of a culture of obesity, of the mean media, of failing schools. McCain's was a much more pessimistic vision of our country, and young people's place in that country in 2008.

What did you think?

For another youthful take on last nights' final debate, check out The Caucus, where 10 - 15 college newspaper editors live-blogged the discussion.

You can read a listing of all the quotes I pulled out of the transcript after the jump.

Here's a look at the moments where the Senators directly addressed youth. I did this by running a search of the transcript for the terms "youth" "young" and "student," and then combining any overlap.

Obama, Abortion: The last point I want to make on the issue of abortion. This is an issue that -- look, it divides us. And in some ways, it may be difficult to -- to reconcile the two views.

But there surely is some common ground when both those who believe in choice and those who are opposed to abortion can come together and say, "We should try to prevent unintended pregnancies by providing appropriate education to our youth, communicating that sexuality is sacred and that they should not be engaged in cavalier activity, and providing options for adoption, and helping single mothers if they want to choose to keep the baby."

Obama, Education:Recently his key economic adviser was asked about why he didn't seem to have some specific programs to help young people go to college and the response was, well, you know, we can't give money to every interest group that comes along.

I don't think America's youth are interest groups, I think they're our future. And this is an example of where we are going to have to prioritize. We can't say we're going to do things and then not explain in concrete terms how we're going to pay for it.

Obama, Education:Last point I want to make, though. We've got some long-term challenges in this economy that have to be dealt with. We've got to fix our energy policy that's giving our wealth away. We've got to fix our health care system and we've got to invest in our education system for every young person to be able to learn.

Obama, Economy (Jobs): And what I want to do is to make sure that the plumber, the nurse, the firefighter, the teacher, the young entrepreneur who doesn't yet have money, I want to give them a tax break now. And that requires us to make some important choices.

Obama, Education and Economy: If we invest now in our young people and their ability to go to college, that will allow them to drive this economy into the 21st century.

McCain, ?????: But to somehow say that group of young women who said "Military wives for McCain" are somehow saying anything derogatory about you, but anything -- and those veterans that wear those hats that say "World War II, Vietnam, Korea, Iraq," I'm not going to stand for people saying that the people that come to my rallies are anything but the most dedicated, patriotic men and women that are in this nation and they're great citizens.

McCain, Trade: Because of previous agreements, their goods and products come into our country for free. So Sen. Obama, who has never traveled south of our border, opposes the Colombia Free Trade Agreement. The same country that's helping us try to stop the flow of drugs into our country that's killing young Americans.

McCain, Health: The rise of obesity amongst young Americans is one of the most alarming statistics that there is. We should have physical fitness programs and nutrition programs in schools. Every parent should know what's going on there.

We -- we need to have -- we need to have employers reward employees who join health clubs and practice wellness and fitness.

Obama, Health Care: Now, what we haven't talked about is Sen. McCain's plan. He says he's going to give you all a $5,000 tax credit. That sounds pretty good. And you can go out and buy your own insurance.

Here's the problem -- that for about 20 million people, you may find yourselves no longer having employer-based health insurance. This is because younger people might be able to get health insurance for $5,000, young and healthy folks.

McCain, Abortion: Let me talk to you about an important aspect of this issue. We have to change the culture of America. Those of us who are proudly pro-life understand that. And it's got to be courage and compassion that we show to a young woman who's facing this terribly difficult decision.

McCain, Abortion: But that does not mean that we will cease to protect the rights of the unborn. Of course, we have to come together. Of course, we have to work together, and, of course, it's vital that we do so and help these young women who are facing such a difficult decision, with a compassion, that we'll help them with the adoptive services, with the courage to bring that child into this world and we'll help take care of it.

Obama, Education: And I think it's important for us to make college affordable. Right now, I meet young people all across the country who either have decided not to go to college or if they're going to college, they are taking on $20,000, $30,000, $50,000, $60,000 worth of debt, and it's very difficult for them to go into some fields, like basic research in science, for example, thinking to themselves that they're going to have a mortgage before they even buy a house.

And that's why I've proposed a $4,000 tuition credit, every student, every year, in exchange for some form of community service, whether it's military service, whether it's Peace Corps, whether it's working in a community.

If we do those things, then I believe that we can create a better school system.

But there's one last ingredient that I just want to mention, and that's parents. We can't do it just in the schools. Parents are going to have to show more responsibility. They've got to turn off the TV set, put away the video games, and, finally, start instilling that thirst for knowledge that our students need.

McCain, Education: Now, throwing money at the problem is not the answer. You will find that some of the worst school systems in America get the most money per student.

So I believe that we need to reward these good teachers.

We need to encourage programs such as Teach for America and Troops to Teachers where people, after having served in the military, can go right to teaching and not have to take these examinations which -- or have the certification that some are required in some states.

Look, we must improve education in this country. As far as college education is concerned, we need to make those student loans available. We need to give them a repayment schedule that they can meet. We need to have full student loan program for in-state tuition. And we certainly need to adjust the certain loan eligibility to inflation.

McCain, Special Needs Children: And I just said to you earlier, town hall meeting after town hall meeting, parents come with kids, children -- precious children who have autism. Sarah Palin knows about that better than most. And we'll find and we'll spend the money, research, to find the cause of autism. And we'll care for these young children. And all Americans will open their wallets and their hearts to do so.