Fremont High School graduate Leah Fitzke doesn’t consider herself Republican or Democrat, but she found Sen. Ben Sasse’s commencement speech unfunny.
Sasse, a Republican from Nebraska, spoke to the Fremont High graduating class Saturday during a virtual commencement ceremony. He primarily offered quips and tried to make humorous observations about the graduates, high school, psychologists and other matters.
Sasse himself is a graduate of Fremont High and has degrees from Ivy League heavyweights Harvard and Yale. He is running for reelection against Democrat Chris Janicek, who also criticized Sasse’s comments.
Among other things, Sasse congratulated the graduates, not for graduating, but for getting out of bed and “putting on something slightly more formal than sweatpants” to watch the ceremony. He said that high school graduations usually are forgettable and that “a lot of us spend a lot of our lives trying to forget as much about high school as we possibly can.”
“And,” he continued, “there are a whole bunch of people who make a whole bunch of money by just trying to help other people forget high school. They’re called psychologists.” He advised the graduates not to major in psychology in college.
Fitzke, who said she will join the Air Force soon, watched with family members, none of whom laughed, she said.
“I mean, I thought it was kind of, really, hurtful,” she said. The intent seemed to include “tearing me down,” she said. “Why would you say that stuff after 13 years of work we’ve put in?”
The Nebraska Counseling Association criticized Sasse for his comments about psychologists. The association sent Sasse a letter calling his observations “tasteless and demeaning.”
Sasse couldn’t be reached for comment Monday, nor could a staffer to whom The World-Herald was referred by Sasse’s Washington office.
Ryan Hamilton, executive director of the Nebraska Republican Party, said Sasse will be reelected to his seat in November.
The counseling association said the senator “showed an alarming lack of sensitivity” toward the graduating seniors. And the association called his comments about psychologists “potshots.”
The group described its role in working with addicts, abused children, victims of sexual assault and people with mental illnesses.
“Mental health isn’t a joke,” said association President-elect Becca Moore of Wood River. “We have a shortage of mental health providers.”
Further, she said, some people are struggling emotionally during this particularly trying time of coronavirus, financial stress and isolation. “We just didn’t find it funny,” she said. “We’ve been working a long time to destigmatize mental health.”
Another new Fremont graduate, Alexis Tolliver, said Sasse “was trying to be light-hearted, but he did so in a very bold manner.” Some people took it literally, she said. “For the most part, I was just baffled as to why that was a graduation speech,” she said.
Tolliver called herself a conservative Republican. She intends to go to Wayne State College as a pre-med student. Both Tolliver and Fitzke graduated with high distinction.
“He’s very blunt in what he says,” Tolliver said. “You can give him that credit.”
Sasse appeared to be unshaven and had his red tie loosened while giving the speech remotely. His comments turned serious when he said this nation must “have a serious reckoning with the thugs in China who let this mess (the virus) spiral out of control by lying about it.”
Hamilton said it’s telling that the Democratic Party “hates Ben Sasse so much they’re defending the Chinese Communist Party.” That’s a losing argument, he said, and Sasse will win reelection.
Sasse said that at least the pandemic would cause the students “to remember your high school graduation.” Nobody else remembers theirs, he said.
Here is our response to @SenSasse graduation speech to FHS. We felt that this speech should have focused on the seniors and their tremendous accomplishments. You can contact Sen. Sasse here: https://t.co/ef0XVRdjBk pic.twitter.com/t7TR8Erzur
— Nebraska Counseling Association (@necounseling1) May 18, 2020
Our best staff photos of May 2020
Iowa Bars

Customers drink at the The BLK Squirrel in Council Bluffs on Thursday. It was the first days bars could reopen in Iowa since being closed to limit the spread of coronavirus.
Iowa Bars

Kelsie Nelson makes drinks at the BLK Squirrel in Council Bluffs on Thursday. “We’re really excited to be back, we’ve missed our customers quite a bit, and we haven’t had that face-to-face interaction, so being able to do that is nice,” she said.
Protest 1

People listen to speakers at the protest of the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police during a rally at the Omaha police's northeast precinct on Thursday.
May Rain

A ant crawls between raindrops on a peony ready to bloom in midtown Omaha on Wednesday.
May Rain

Geese and goslings swim as rain falls at Fontenelle Park in Omaha on Tuesday.
Memorial Day

Andrea Williams, left, and Linda Simmonds walk through Forest Lawn Memorial Park to lay flowers on the grave of Robert Simmonds on Saturday.
Memorial Day

Pat Brown and her son Daryl Brown Sr. make their way to decorate a grave on Sunday at Mount Hope Cemetery in Omaha.
Memorial Day

Cindy, left, and Greg Blome lay flowers at the graves of numerous relatives buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park on Saturday.
Memorial Day

Pat Brown holds great-grandson Maxwell Carter's hand while decorating a grave Sunday at Mount Hope Cemetery in Omaha.
The King is watching

Morgan Smith, right, gives James Anderson a haircut at The Men's Salons - Aksarben.
Fence Message

A message for students graces a fence at the Bryan Elementary School in Millard.
Flights of Honor

The Flights of Honor free exhibit, commemorating Honor Flights for Nebraska veterans and military families, runs through Memorial Day at the VFW Post 2503 in Omaha.
Restaurants Reopen

Shirley’s Diner is one of the many restaurants in Omaha welcoming back customers. Restaurants must space tables six feet apart among several restrictions aimed at limiting the spread of coronavirus.
Musicians for Healing

Christina Klem serenades a resident at Fountain View Retirement Community. Klem was part of a group of mostly medical students giving a window concert. For many, it’s the first entertainment they’ve had in months.
Fill a Growler

Dawn Campbell, left, sells Megan Rerucha two growlers at Zipline Brewing Co. in downtown Omahay. Bars can take a step toward normal service on June 1.
Salvage yard fire

Firefighters battle a fire at U-Pull It Used Auto Parts north of downtown Omaha.
Salvage yard fire

People watch as firefighters battle a fire at U-Pull It Used Auto Parts north of downtown Omaha.
Spring Storm

A thunderstorm that prompted a tornado warning moves over Interstate 29 on Saturday near Glenwood, Iowa.
Eagle

A bald eagle prepares to take off from a tree on Lambert Avenue southwest of Pacific Junction, Iowa after watching a storm to the north that spawned a tornado warning on Saturday.
Grad Surprise

Jennifer Peck, left, shows her son Jack Wilkins his surprise graduation party at their west Omaha home on Friday.
First Patient 1

Emma Hutchinson and her father, Ralph Hutchinson, stand for a photo in his Omaha home. They were the first and second confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Nebraska. Emma spent weeks in the hospital and was put on a ventilator as she recovered.
First Patient 1

Hutchinson with a note she made for the staff of the Nebraska Medical Center. She spent 30 days at the hospital.
Last day of school 1

Dawn Zumbrennen, an eighth grade American history teacher, waves to students in the bed of a truck during a summer send-off parade at Elkhorn Valley View Middle School on Friday. It was the last day of virtual classes after the public school had to close because of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Last day of school 10

A summer send-off parade at Legacy School on Friday. It was the last day of virtual classes after the private school had to close because of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Recovery

Immanuel health care workers who cared for Ruby Jones in the ICU and in rehab gather to cheer her as she is discharged.
Rain

Tire tracks are left in the ribbons of rain in an Omaha parking garage on Wednesday, May 13, 2020.
Kosher BBQ

Rabbi Yoni Dreyer and his children Lavi, Tchiya and Eitan watch Peter Brunette entertain families in their vehicles with a juggling routine at a Lag B’Omer celebration with a drive-thru kosher barbecue at Chabad House in Omaha on Tuesday.
Kosher BBQ

Rabbi Mendel Katzman dances with his grandson, Yitzchak Baumgarten at a Lag B'Omer celebration with a drive-thru kosher barbecue at Chabad House in Omaha on Tuesday. Lag B'Omer is a holiday of Jewish pride and unity, often celebrated with a bonfire, emblematic of the soul rising up as flames do.
Nebraska Primary Voting

Sharon Beverly waits for voters at a downtown Omaha precinct on Tuesday during the Nebraska primary. Precinct sites had social distancing measures in place to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
Nebraska Primary Voting

A voter fills out a ballot at Nathan Hale Magnet Middle School in Omaha on Tuesday.
Roadmaster

A 1949 Buick Roadmaster is lifted into the Redfield building in downtown Omaha on Monday, May 11, 2020. The building was once Nebraska's biggest Buick dealership, and is now being refurbished with space for offices and a restaurant.
Online Graduation

Matthew Meacham steps outside for photos while wearing his cap and gown after watching the University of Nebraska-Lincoln graduation celebration.
Online Graduation

Matthew Meacham wears his cap and gown while watching the University of Nebraska-Lincoln graduation celebration with his mom, Jeanette, sibling Kai and their miniature Australian shepherd, Ryder, at his family's Omaha home on Saturday.
Sunday services return

Parishioners pray during Mass at Saint Cecilia Cathedral on Sunday in Omaha.
Sunday services return

Deacon James Tardy reads during Mass at Saint Cecilia Cathedral on Sunday in Omaha.
NorthStar

Scott Hazelrigg can’t bring kids to NorthStar, so he’s going to their homes to make sure they are doing okay during the pandemic.
NorthStar

William Sherrod, top, hugs his mother Rhonda Scott in their front yard Wednesday while talking with NorthStar president Scott Hazelrigg. Hazelrigg is visiting youths who used to attend NorthStar enrichment programs but can't because of the coronavirus.
Sunday services return

Ron Helms hands out masks at Saint Cecilia Cathedral on Sunday in Omaha.
Mariachi music

Emmanuel Saunz performs mariachi music for healthcare workers outside OneWorld Community Health Center in Omaha on Friday, May 8, 2020. The clinic has been testing potential novel coronavirus patients in the parking lot of the south Omaha location.
A letter of praise

A letter of appreciation for those on the frontlines of the novel coronavirus pandemic outside a home in Omaha on Wednesday, May 06, 2020.
A sign of hope

A message of hope during the novel coronavirus pandemic from a home in Omaha on Wednesday, May 6, 2020.
Nebraska begins to reopen

People dine at Harold's Koffee House on the first day of loosened coronavirus restrictions on Monday, May 04, 2020.
Test Nebraska begins in Omaha

A worker uses a swab to test someone for coronavirus at a drive-thru testing site in Lot D of the CHI Health Center.
Test Nebraska begins in Omaha

CHI Health medical professionals applaud a child who underwent testing for the novel coronavirus on Monday outside Omaha’s downtown arena.
Test Nebraska begins in Omaha

Medical workers wait for people at a tent at a drive through testing site in Lot D of the CHI Health Center on Monday, May 04, 2020. This was part of the TestNebraska initiative launched two weeks ago by Gov. Pete Ricketts.
Volunteers help Food Bank for the Heartland

Volunteers and members of the Nebraska National Guard unload donations at the Food Bank for the Heartland 10525 J St., on Saturday, May 02, 2020.
Volunteers help Food Bank for the Heartland

A member of the Nebraska National Guard directs traffic during a food drive at the Food Bank for the Heartland 10525 J St., on Saturday, May 02, 2020.
Volunteers help Food Bank for the Heartland

Volunteers and members of the Nebraska National Guard unload donations at the Food Bank for the Heartland 10525 J St., on Saturday, May 02, 2020.
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