Adolescent Sexuality by Dr. Karen Rayne

Sex education is a highly political topics these days. The current administration has set a high priority on abstinence-only education. Other sex education strategies focus on pregnancy and STD prevention. The ways these topics are discussed (or not) with adolescents has the potential to have a serious impact on their sexuality, both now and in the future.

Therefore, I consider it imperative that in assessing the politics of the current presidential candidates, sex education is clearly and openly discussed. In order to make the presidential candidates’ views clear, I will ask each candidate to reply to two questions about sex education. Here are the questions I will ask:

• What do you believe should be the goal of sex education?
• How do you believe that goal can best be accomplished?

Because there are so very, very many men and women running, I will only include those who have actually announced their candidacy, and will post their answers over several weeks. There are several potential candidates who have established exploratory committees, and I will be sure to include them when/if they officially announce their campaigns. The list of official candidates includes:

Democrats

• Josheph R. Biden Jr (Senator for Delaware)
• Hillary Rodham Clinton (Senator from New York)
• Christopher J. Dodd (Senator from Connecticut)
• John Edwards (Former Senator from North Carolina)
• Mike Gravel (Former Senator from Alaska)
• Dennis Kucinich (Representative from Ohio)
• Barack Obama (Senator from Illinois)

Republicans

• Sam Brownback (Senator from Kansas)
• Rudolph W. Giuliani (Former Mayor of New York)
• Duncan Hunter (Representative from California)
• Ron Paul (Representative from my own home state of Texas)
• Mitt Romney (Former Governor of Massachusetts)
• Tom Tancredo (Representative from Colorado)
• Tommy G. Thompson (Former Governor of Wisconsin)