MSNBC "The Ed Show" - Transcript

Interview

MSNBC "The Ed Show" - Transcript

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota is with us tonight. Senator, I appreciate your time on this.

I don‘t know how you feel about it, but I feel it is an absolute insult to the President of the United States. I‘d like to get your thoughts on this.

Senator, good to have you with us.

SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR (D), MINNESOTA: First of all, Ed, it‘s great. We missed you out at the Minnesota State Fair with the peach-glazed pig cheeks and everything else we‘re eating out there.

But I have to tell you this, I think that the President should have a right to address the students of this country.

When you go back in time, the first George Bush actually did a teleconference with the students of this country on science and math.

And I know Charlie Kyte who was just on—we‘re friends, we actually just did an event together on truancy and I know he didn‘t have much time.

I think one of his focuses was just the process. He actually said to the other superintendents if you have concerns, you can play it later.

But I want to focus more on what I‘ve been hearing from some of the right wing commentators from across this country.

SCHULTZ: Senator—hold on, Senator.

This is not part of the process. This is actually school administrators in Minnesota and around the country in Kentucky, in Virginia, they‘re afraid of what the President might say. That‘s what this is.

KLOBUCHAR: They have no reason to be afraid.

If I could go through their concerns: One, they said they wanted to see it ahead of time. The White House is releasing it, as far as I know, 24 hours ahead of time. Two, the president‘s topic is one they care about, keeping kids in school. Truancy is the kindergarten of crime. Trying to keep kids in school is a value that they share.

I‘m hoping that this will calm down. It was a sudden thing for some of these superintendents. They‘re just trying to figure out, they‘re getting calls that aren‘t fair and they‘re just figuring it out.

I‘m not defending that as much as I‘m saying that I think in the end people should allow the students to see the President of the United States just like they let them see the first George Bush or Ronald Reagan on drugs or just as they saw my daughter brings home presidential physical fitness certificates that were signed by George W. Bush.

SCHULTZ: Well, it just seems to me that these administrators ought to tell these parents if you don‘t like it, you can send them to a private school. But in a public school in the United States of America, we have confidence that we don‘t have to screen what the President is going to say.

I find this amazing and insulting. Do they actually think that Barack Obama is going to try to sell third graders on single payer? I mean, what the hell is going on here?

KLOBUCHAR: Actually, the White House has made very clear, Ed, that this isn‘t about policy.

SCHULTZ: Exactly.

KLOBUCHAR: It‘s just greeting the students and saying stay in your classroom. So I‘m hoping that this will calm down. I don‘t think you should be surprised after what we‘ve seen this past month that there are people that up in arms about things. But we have to remember here is the message that the President is trying to convey.

SCHULTZ: The message is being screened.

KLOBUCHAR: Kids have to stay in school.

SCHULTZ: Senator, the President is being screened, and it is wrong and these parents are overboard. They‘re the political ones, not the president.

Senator Klobuchar, great to have you with us tonight.

KLOBUCHAR: It was great to be on.

SCHULTZ: That‘s THE ED SHOW.

You bet.

KLOBUCHAR: Thank you.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source