Political fervor high when CSC group visits Washington, D.C.

The week-long trip focused on the federal legal system, and was -organized and led by Dr. George Watson, professor of justice studies.

The CSC group arrived in Washington on Sunday, Oct. 16 as the American Labor Party was holding a demonstration and marched from the Lincoln Memorial to the Capitol.

“It was a pretty heated political atmosphere,” said Watson. “This is the old Communist Party. They had some pretty clever signs and posters. It was a fascinating time to be there. The political participation was running high.”

This was not the first time that Watson and CSC students have visited the nation’s capital when emotions were running high. Watson noted that the two snipers had just been captured after killing 10 people in the area two years ago when he took a group there

Besides the visits to the array of monuments and museums, some of this year’s highlights included:

--Sitting in row 4 at the U.S. Supreme Court while seven of the nine justices were there, including Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who announced that he had thyroid cancer later in the week.

--Meeting with assistants to U.S. Rep. Tom Osborne and U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson to tour their chambers and discuss Nebraska issues.

--Visiting the FBI Office and talking with three members of the Counter Terrorism Unit.

--Meeting with Rena Kim, formerly of Chadron and now a senior attorney for Homeland Security She explained her duties and the nation’s efforts to keep its citizens safe.

--Going to the Georgetown University Law Center, where the hostess was a freshman law student from Albion, Neb.

--Meeting seven gold medalists and one silver medalist from the recent Olympic games and having pictures taken with them and obtaining autographs from them. The greats included undefeated wrestler Kael Sanderson, 100-meter champion Justin Gatlin and platform diver Laura Wilkinson.

Watson said at least one of the FBI agents they talked with was hard-bitten.

“We discussed the Patriot Act and counter terrorism policies. He told us that the terrorists are out to kill Americans and he’s trying to stop them. He was taking his work seriously.”

Watson said the FBI agents also discussed some of the bank fraud cases involving illicit cattle deals in Nebraska.

The students taking the trip were Lynette Belknap, Hemingford; Cassie Bohn, Newcastle, Wyo.; Kari Daly, Hershey; Tony Essay and Carla Giger, Alliance; Jeri Ewoldt, Mullen; Amanda Halderman, Custer, S.D.; Michele Meissner, Mountain View, Wyo.; Heather Messmer, Sturgis, S.D.; Jason Thomas, Rapid City, S.D.; Corey Wasserburger, Fort Worth, Tex.; Anthony Ybarra, Gering; and Aster Yitahew, Ethiopia.