2) Crump, Gwendolyn. “Kids get political lesson - firsthand Fifth-grade reporters for ScholasticNews.com toss Rep. Robert Matsui questions on education and the role of government.” The Sacramento Bee 21 August 2002: B1.

Fifth-grader Mary Jo O'Connor thought her congressman would offer a solution to the problematic cockroaches, leaky roofs and graffiti plaguing some schools.

"I thought he would say he would fix it as soon as possible," the 10-year-old said.

Instead, she got a lesson in politics - that nothing gets done without committees, lots of discussion, bills, signatures. ...

Rep. Robert Matsui, D-Sacramento, told her he hoped bills would be passed to give schools more money for repairs and modernization.

His answers seemed to be an eye-opener for Mary Jo and the cub reporters from
William Land Elementary School who hurled the queries.

Matsui, who graduated from the Sacramento school in 1953, fielded questions about politics, education and the war on terrorism from the group of youngsters who are covering the 5th District congressional election for www.ScholasticNews.com. The Web site is from Scholastic, a children's publishing and media company.

The Sacramento students are the first of six classes across the country that the Web site has deployed to cover midterm elections in California, New York, Illinois, Texas, Florida and Pennsylvania.

The project is intended to give students an understanding of how democracy works. Students are scheduled today to interview first lady Sharon Davis and Richard Frankhuizen, Matsui's Republican challenger.

The students' news stories will appear on the Web site in October.

"I think it was fun," fifth-grader Victor Chang said of Matsui's visit. "Not many schools get to interview a congressman."
To begin, Matsui explained his role as a 23-year congressman. "I help people make laws," he told the class of 30 children.
He explained that he helps make sure grandparents get their Social Security checks and helps the president when bad things happen, such as the terrorism in New York City.

Students seemed particularly interested in Sept. 11.

"Is Osama bin Laden still alive?" a student asked.

"We don't know," Matsui told the child. "We think he probably is. The main goal is not only to try to find him and capture him, but also all the people who support him as well."

Living in a democracy offers people certain freedoms, but he added that with those freedoms come certain risks.

"We have to be more careful now," he said. "We have a lot of work ahead us."

Matsui was impressed with how thoughtful and well-researched the students' questions were.

"There's a general belief that their lives have changed," Matsui said after the students interviewed him. "All of them had seen this, and it's hard for them not to know the U.S. was attacked."

One student asked him how he survived an internment camp. Matsui spent the first years of his life in a camp for Japanese Americans after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

"My parents had a difficult time," Matsui said. "But they were able to survive it by believing in their country and democracy. They did whatever they could to make life better."

Bianca Lopez wanted to know why California is so important to the rest of the nation.

"More people live in our state than any other state in the country," he explained, adding that California has dominance when it comes to making decisions in Washington, D.C.

He said California is the "trendsetter" for the rest of the nation, "like when someone dresses a certain way and everybody likes it. When we do something, everyone else wants to be like us."

By the end of the interview, Matsui seemed less of a wise gentleman and more like a classmate who returned home - leaning in close to hear his "peers," milling about the room and answering questions of a more personal nature – just like the new kid in school.
He shared his own good experiences at the school, what it was like when he was a fifth-grader and the importance of an education.
"When you go to school and do very well, you end up being happier in life - with a feeling of accomplishment," Matsui said. "We want to make sure you can provide for your children when you get older."