"Here at Oakland School for the Arts, students and teachers have some opinions on your new position, and that ridiculously long (and embarrassing) voting process. I’m sure you’d be interested to hear what your fellow Californians think of you!"--Zara Quiter, 6th Grade
Dear Kevin McCarthy,
Congratulations on winning Speaker of the House. And that gavel. Now you’re following Nancy Polosi (In many people’s opinion, a great speaker, so you have a lot to live up to), another Californian speaker. Here at Oakland School for the Arts, students and teachers have some opinions on your new position, and that ridiculously long (and embarrassing) voting process. I’m sure you’d be interested to hear what your fellow Californians think of you!
First, the voting day. You finally won. And you ended the night with your speech. Your speech was fine. But I do think everyone agrees that Hakeem Jeffries’ speech was so mind-blowingly amazing, so you can’t really compete. Remember, you can be removed, Kevin. You signed a contract to become speaker so that at any given time, only one person is needed to call for a vote for your removal. You can only blame yourself for signing a deal with the devil.
But who are you really, Kevin McCarthy? From your hometown of Bakersfield, CA, people there know you as the son of a firefighter, with not so great grades in high school. You played for the Bakersfield High School’s football team, and won the title of “Best Couple” with your girlfriend, and now wife, Judy. When you were in college, during the summer of 1987, you sent an application to work as a summer intern for Rep. Bill Thomas, a Republican from California. You didn’t make the cut for the summer, but did in the fall. You became Thomas’s prodigy. When Thomas left Congress in 2007, he was succeeded by you. But now, Thomas does not respect you at all because he thinks you are a politician who will lie to get people to like you (I wonder why…).
Jack Blangy, who teaches Government at OSA, says, “I am not a big fan of Speaker McCarthy. He rose to power by courting more extreme elements within the Republican Party and his original claim to fame was being part of a group that proposed massive cuts to valuable government programs I support.” Blangy’s predictions on whether or not you will keep your position are, “Part of how he got the votes to become the Speaker was that he conceded to making a rule that would allow himself to be voted out at any time.”
Blangy believes that your term will be complicated. “I am predicting the term will be messy with a lot of political battles within the Republican party and with Democrats. Some of these battles might lead to positive changes but they could also lead to dysfunction. I am not sure what the results will be, but I predict it will be good for Democrats' election chances in 2024.”
“I’m sure we’re not done with seeing his embarrassments,” Jordan Karnes, the Literary Arts Chair says. “The contract that he agreed to to get voted in is so embarrassing. Like, he really has no power. If you don’t stand for anything, you’ll fall!”
Karnes continues, “Kevin McCarthy is a career politician. I don’t think he stands for anything. And so, I think that was really illustrated by his election process for speaker. During the next big conflict he could be voted out. That was part of the rules that he agreed to; that any individual person could instigate a vote for him to be demoted.” Karnes, being from Bakersfield, is embarrassed by him.
“Kevin McCarthy’s views support the current system that we have,” says Maya Mastropasqua, an eighth grade student at OSA. “They don’t really contradict anything so I can see him lasting a while.” Mastropasqua’s general opinion on you is, “I don’t agree with him, or his beliefs, and honestly, the way he held onto being the speaker is just obnoxious.”
Mastropasqua continues, “I think McCarthy will get a lot of backlash because the general public will be upset at him and call him out more. But I don’t think that really affects whether he gets re-elected or not because the government is always trying to protect themselves, and not us.”
Well, there you go, Kevin. That’s what the students and staff of Oakland School for the Arts think of you, your new position, and how the voting for you went. If you didn’t get the gist, these OSA students and staff don’t agree with you or like you. You want the title. You're a career politician. Good luck trying to keep your position!
Sincerely,
OSA Students and Staff
Message Delivered by Zara Quiter
Congratulations on winning Speaker of the House. And that gavel. Now you’re following Nancy Polosi (In many people’s opinion, a great speaker, so you have a lot to live up to), another Californian speaker. Here at Oakland School for the Arts, students and teachers have some opinions on your new position, and that ridiculously long (and embarrassing) voting process. I’m sure you’d be interested to hear what your fellow Californians think of you!
First, the voting day. You finally won. And you ended the night with your speech. Your speech was fine. But I do think everyone agrees that Hakeem Jeffries’ speech was so mind-blowingly amazing, so you can’t really compete. Remember, you can be removed, Kevin. You signed a contract to become speaker so that at any given time, only one person is needed to call for a vote for your removal. You can only blame yourself for signing a deal with the devil.
But who are you really, Kevin McCarthy? From your hometown of Bakersfield, CA, people there know you as the son of a firefighter, with not so great grades in high school. You played for the Bakersfield High School’s football team, and won the title of “Best Couple” with your girlfriend, and now wife, Judy. When you were in college, during the summer of 1987, you sent an application to work as a summer intern for Rep. Bill Thomas, a Republican from California. You didn’t make the cut for the summer, but did in the fall. You became Thomas’s prodigy. When Thomas left Congress in 2007, he was succeeded by you. But now, Thomas does not respect you at all because he thinks you are a politician who will lie to get people to like you (I wonder why…).
Jack Blangy, who teaches Government at OSA, says, “I am not a big fan of Speaker McCarthy. He rose to power by courting more extreme elements within the Republican Party and his original claim to fame was being part of a group that proposed massive cuts to valuable government programs I support.” Blangy’s predictions on whether or not you will keep your position are, “Part of how he got the votes to become the Speaker was that he conceded to making a rule that would allow himself to be voted out at any time.”
Blangy believes that your term will be complicated. “I am predicting the term will be messy with a lot of political battles within the Republican party and with Democrats. Some of these battles might lead to positive changes but they could also lead to dysfunction. I am not sure what the results will be, but I predict it will be good for Democrats' election chances in 2024.”
“I’m sure we’re not done with seeing his embarrassments,” Jordan Karnes, the Literary Arts Chair says. “The contract that he agreed to to get voted in is so embarrassing. Like, he really has no power. If you don’t stand for anything, you’ll fall!”
Karnes continues, “Kevin McCarthy is a career politician. I don’t think he stands for anything. And so, I think that was really illustrated by his election process for speaker. During the next big conflict he could be voted out. That was part of the rules that he agreed to; that any individual person could instigate a vote for him to be demoted.” Karnes, being from Bakersfield, is embarrassed by him.
“Kevin McCarthy’s views support the current system that we have,” says Maya Mastropasqua, an eighth grade student at OSA. “They don’t really contradict anything so I can see him lasting a while.” Mastropasqua’s general opinion on you is, “I don’t agree with him, or his beliefs, and honestly, the way he held onto being the speaker is just obnoxious.”
Mastropasqua continues, “I think McCarthy will get a lot of backlash because the general public will be upset at him and call him out more. But I don’t think that really affects whether he gets re-elected or not because the government is always trying to protect themselves, and not us.”
Well, there you go, Kevin. That’s what the students and staff of Oakland School for the Arts think of you, your new position, and how the voting for you went. If you didn’t get the gist, these OSA students and staff don’t agree with you or like you. You want the title. You're a career politician. Good luck trying to keep your position!
Sincerely,
OSA Students and Staff
Message Delivered by Zara Quiter
