The DailyER Talks With The Nation's 'Foxiest' Democrat, Scott Kleeb

Story by Carson Vaughan 

| Published Sep 30, 2008

ER: What’s your favorite movie? Book? Song?

SK: Movie: “Mr. Smith goes to Washington”
Book: “All the King’s Men”
Song: “Ring of Fire, Johnny Cash”

ER: What’s the biggest mistake you’ve made as a professor at Hastings College?

SK: Boy…starting my first day and not recognizing enough of the hunger and energy that young people across our state have to improve our society.

When I started at Hastings it blew me away what students were doing for our communities. I wasn’t doing enough to fuel that hunger.

ER: What’s it like to be the politician that all the chicks want? You’ve got the rock-star appeal, being young and all. [NOTE: Mr. Kleeb’s wife, Jane, is sitting in on the interview]

SK:It’s because they know that Kevin [Bieging] is with me and he is available. [Kleeb points to his personal assistant sitting across the room.]

ER: What do you hate the most about Mike Johanns?

SK: I don’t hate Mike Johanns at all. I just don’t think that we should be continuing to send the same people back to Washington.

We face a choice there. We face a system that is broken. Washington is broken.

There is a solution, but we’ve been so bitterly divided over partisan politics that we’ve had no movements. Nebraska can solve challenges, and we have to do that.

You should never lose out on who you are. If I’m a senator I need to always keep in mind why I’m there.

And the last thing is to be able to come home and if my two little girls ask me what I did today to be able to give them an answer. I don’t know a politician who does that. It’s just not right.

ER: What are you going to do for me as a college student?

SK: Treat you like a voter.

We can do better with that. We should be investing more in energy jobs and infrastructure in Nebraska.

We can do better on healthcare. We should give more opportunities to give students the chance to do what they want to do. Prices go up, but student opportunities not.

As a society we should be encouraging more people to go to school and increase their opportunities. Expand national service programs, AmeriCorps and other national programs.

What I love about colleges and young people is that anything is possible. This generation wants to do service programs and do something bigger than themselves.

It’s inspiring. If more people like us acted like young people do we could solve these challenges.

ER: Every politician says they want to diminish partisan politics. How do you plan to do that?

SK: Creating more jobs in Nebraska for college graduates is absolutely a piece of a larger plan to strengthen the economy here.

Supporting young entrepreneurs who want to open small business is another piece of that plan. 

We also have to provide more support for service programs like AmeriCorps that allow graduates to help their communities while reducing student debt.

We have to support research initiatives that inspire graduates to stay in Nebraska and solve the challenges that we’re facing today.

ER: Why do we allow prior censorship in our high schools? I thought they were supposed to be the birthplace of democracy.

SK: I think if we’re going to be teaching journalism we need to have informed editorial oversight. Censorship I have a problem with.

There should be somebody who’s trained, who knows about journalism, so the journalistic oversight is going on good ideas.

ER: What is the next step if you don’t receive enough votes on Nov. 4?

SK: Keep going.

There are many ways that we can go. If we do elect in this state the politicians who have already been there nothing will change.

We need to continue to fight for those goals, healthcare reform, etc. This is not a short-term goal for me. Young people are saying they don’t like the idea of what they’re headed for.

ER: Do you have a chance really?

SK: I think the chances are great, and here’s why: People know that the greatest risk we face in this election is that nothing will change.

If we continue to send people back to Washington even though they haven’t done what we asked them to do, nothing will change.

The more young people that get involved the more that becomes a reality. Nothing will change with my opponent [Mike Johanns], and people know that.