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BY MENGHAN JIN

In print | Published April 22, 2010 — Updated April 24, 2010 07:01

When Jenn Medeiros ’11 was rushed to the hospital last November after collapsing on the night the old health care bill was put to a vote in Congress, Congressman Joe Sestak took time to check up on her wellbeing.

“During this historic process, he was in the House of Representatives and before he went on the floor to speak for the bill, he was e-mailing the youngest person on his staff and saying, ‘How are you doing? How are you feeling?’” said Medeiros, who is a former junior member of his campaign staff.

What really impressed Medeiros, though, was Sestak’s personal visit to the hospital. “I was in my hospital room a couple days later still recovering and he just showed up … What he does is really about the people; he really does care about individual people,” she said.

Representative of the 7th Congressional District of Pennsylvania since 2007, Sestak is now running against incumbent Senator Arlen Specter of 30 years in the May 18 Pennsylvania Primaries. The winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican candidate Pat Toomey, who lost six years ago in the Republican nomination to Specter, for a seat in the U.S. Senate.

“I believe that what is most harmful to this nation is the lack of trust that citizens now feel in Washington D.C. and elected officials there,” Sestak said. “I want to become a public servant as the next U.S. Senator and gain the trust of Pennsylvanians.”

Just a year ago, incumbent Specter switched to the Democratic Party after serving 30 years in the Senate as a Republican and gained full support from President Barack Obama. According to the New York Times, Specter is currently leading Sestak in the polls, yet neck-to-neck with Toomey.

Swarthmore has maintained a close connection with Sestak ever since his candidacy to run for Congress back in 2006. Having already made numerous appearances on campus, Sestak came to campus in October of 2008 before his reelection for a town hall meeting to debate Republican challenger Craig Williams. Students have also canvassed and worked at the phone bank for his campaign.

“He has a longstanding and really amazing relationship with the College Democrats. I’ve met with him several times and have always had a positive experience,” former College Democrats president Molly Weston ’10 said.

Currently, however, the College Democrats are not endorsing either Sestak or Specter. According to College Democrats President Natalie Litton ’12, it is against their policy to endorse candidates during primaries.

According to member Harry Apostoleris ’12, however, one thing is clear: “We’re endorsing the winner of the Democratic Primary.”

When Sestak announced his candidacy to run against Specter in 2006, many Democrats in the 7th district were enthusiastic about his campaign. “He’s the kind of candidate that people can get excited about,” Medeiros said.

“I’ve always believed in Joe Sestak and thought that he was an excellent candidate, an excellent Democrat, and an excellent person,” said Doug Gilchrist-Scott ’09, who worked in Sestak’s district office last year and was part of College Democrats.

Sestak decided to run for Congress when his daughter, who was diagnosed with brain cancer five years ago, was told that she only had a few months to live. In office, Sestak was driven by his and his daughter’s experience with the health care system to take a particular interest in our substandard health care system, targeting to reform those issues throughout his congressional career.

“It’s what drove me into Congress,” Sestak said. “I wrote her a letter when we voted for the health care bill and said, ‘Dear Alex, tonight I am voting on the bill that your bravery sent me to Congress to do and now all children will have the benefit to match your bravery to do what you did.’”

At an open town hall meeting last summer in a Philadelphia church, Sestak encouraged all in attendance to challenge the current heath care system. According to Medeiros, he told everyone in the church, “I’m here, I’m on the stage, ask me anything. I’m not leaving until everyone here who has a question or concern has had it answered or addressed.”

The meeting lasted from around 6 p.m. to sometime after midnight. According to Medeiros, at the end of the night, Sestak was still out on the sidewalk answering questions.

“That is a classic example of him really going above and beyond what is expected of a member of Congress,” Medeiros said. “And that really speaks volumes about the kind of Congressman he is and the kind of Senator he would be.”

Last summer, after interning at the Sestak campaign, Medeiros was promoted to a full-time position as a junior member of the campaign staff to deal mostly with communications. Working closely with Sestak, she developed a close relationship with the congressman.

“He’s the most hardworking, driven person that I’ve ever met. I know that he takes a lot of heat for being tough on people who work for him, but he never asks of anybody anything that he wouldn’t do himself,” she said.

The intensity of Sestak’s education and profession before serving on Congress gives insight into his drive. Graduating second in his class from the U.S. Naval Academy, Sestak went on to Harvard University to obtain both his master’s and doctoral degrees. Then for 31 years, he served in the U.S. Navy, reaching the status of a three-star admiral and becoming the highest ranking former military officer to ever serve in Congress, Weston said.

“I learned in the U.S. Navy that you’re not only responsible for the sailors and achieving in how to achieve a mission but that you’re accountable for them,” Sestak said. “I will work extremely hard with a lot of energy but in the most honest, accountable way, because I believe that you can’t just be responsible, you must be willing to be held accountable for what you say you’re going to try to do.”

One of the biggest obstacles for Sestak in preparation for the upcoming primary is getting his name and story out there, Gilchrist-Scott said.

With the $5 million that Sestak has on reserve for television advertisements, he finally released his first ad this past Tuesday, with primarily biographically focused content.

Since the incumbent has been a senator for three decades already, Sestak does not have as much recognition as Specter. However, Sestak and his campaign staff are working very hard to reach out to as many PA residents as possible before the primary.

“If he could meet everybody in Pennsylvania face-to-face, I guarantee he would do it,” Medeiros said. “He really goes all over the place and meets all kinds of different groups … and works tirelessly.”

Disclosure note: Molly Weston is a columnist for The Phoenix but had no role in the production of this article.

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