Greenhill Journalist Gets Quote From Trump
When I met University Park resident Catherine Leffert she was a persistent, tenacious, and gregarious 9-year-old. At 18 it seems her personality hasn’t changed and those traits that made her endearing to me when she was a camper make me admire her now as a journalist.
Catherine is the Editor-in-Chief of Greenhill’s student newspaper The Evergreen. Two hours before Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s rally on Monday she figured out how to get a press pass via some snooping on social media and the internet.
She then proceeded to get what many seasoned journalists couldn’t out of the Trumpster — a quote. Click Read More to find out what he said and read an excerpt from her column about the experience.
As Trump starts making his way, shaking hands and signing autographs, these killer journalists get even more agitated. They scream his name; they wave their hands; and trust me, my toes suffered several bruises.
Finally, the man makes his way to the media. He answers a couple of questions from other reporters and walks six feet. But I was not about to come all this way and not get what I came for. I screamed, and I mean how you scream as if a tarantula just showed up in your bedroom, “Mr. Trump! I’m 18 years old!”
He glanced my way. This was my only chance. ‘What will you do for MY generation?’ I asked.
He smiled and with an upward tilt of his head, which made him seem even taller, and said, ‘You’re gonna be so happy. We’re gonna make your country strong.’ With that, he answered one more question, and walked away.
Well, it was an answer. That was more than most people got that night.”
Somehow I am not at all surprised that she was able to get in, claw her way through the crowd of “fully grown hounds of hell equipped with notepads and microphones” and incredulous campaign staff, and hold her own. Way to go girl!
