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Great Neck Students Help Weinstock Prep for Congressional Debate
Student debaters from Great Neck North High School helped Weinstock prepare for his first debate as a Candidate for Congress
Great Neck, NY (June 13, 2020) – Michael Weinstock prepared for his first debate as a Candidate for Congress with the help of student debaters from Great Neck North High School.
Weinstock is a graduate of Great Neck North. He is also is a former sex crimes prosecutor and former firefighter. If elected, Weinstock will become the first 9/11 firefighter elected to Congress and the first openly gay person to represent New York City in Congress.
“The students grilled me”joked Weinstock. “These kids don’t mess around when it comes to debating.”
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Five students helped the candidate prepare for the Zoom debate that was hosted by the League of Women Voters.
The group conducted mock debates, mostly via teleconference. During each mock debate, one student served as the moderator, while the remaining students took turns standing-in as the other candidates in the race.
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The students also watched recent debates on you-tube and prepared a long list of potential debate questions. During their preparation sessions they peppered the candidate with questions on a variety of topics, ranging from health care and “Black Lives Matter” to the climate crises and problems associated with helicopter noise.
Sahar Tartak is a student at Great Neck North, and she has been volunteering with the Weinstock campaign since early March. It was her idea to bring the student debaters onboard the campaign. “I knew it would work out. My debating friends take this stuff very seriously and I knew they would find Michael’s campaign really inspiring.”
Michael Weinstock is challenging incumbent Congressman Tom Suozzi in the upcoming Democratic Primary, which is being held on June 23. The district includes sections of Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties. Melanie D’Arrigo, a wellness coach from Port Washington, is also on the ballot.
The Great Neck students included Sahar Tartak, Matthew Mah, Kenny Xiao and Adam Sanders. David Griff, a student debater from Westchester, also participated.
“When the students first offered to help me prepare, I was a little reticent. After all, they are high school students” explained Weinstock. “My reticence disappeared in about three minutes. These kids are brilliant and extremely industrious.”