For Boys Nation 2024, it was the connections they made

On Thursday night of the 2024 session of American Legion Boys Nation, while their fellow senators met in committees to finalize bills, the four elected officers — President Morgan Johnson of Oklahoma, Vice President Rohan Parekh of Alabama, President Pro Tempore Eshaam Bhattad of Illinois, and Secretary of the Senate Charan Bala of Maryland — sat down with members of The American Legion’s Media & Communications Team for a roundtable of sorts to talk about their week.

After an initial question, the quartet handled the conversation themselves, addressing their appreciation for The American Legion, their optimism for the future and more.

Here is their conversation, with minor edits for clarity.

Question: Why did you decide to run for your office?

Bhattad: I do an event outside of Boys State called Congressional Debate. Actually, before coming to Boys (Nation), I brought my gavel, and then I heard about the role of president pro tem, and I was like, ‘Oh, this is a perfect role, I get to use a gavel’ – the others laugh – and so honestly running for it was something I really wanted to do, especially when I read the manual. And it all worked out; I think the election process was a lot more quicker for pro tem, did not have to do a lot of the politicking and stuff, and it honestly freed me up for a lot of the week, I got to have a lot more genuine conversations than the politicking, the façade of that all went away, so that was pretty helpful.

Johnson: That’s a good reason to run for that, because me and Rohan had to, like, we were stressed for a good portion of it.

Parekh: Yeah, we were really stressed.

Johnson: Yeah, but for me, there hasn’t been a president from Oklahoma (since 1995) so, love my state, wanted to represent us, and at Boys State, I chose not to run for governor because I thought that I would not be able to win, I wouldn’t stand a chance or anything, so I ran for lieutenant governor, ended up winning that election, and then I had like an itch in the back of my head, ‘What if I went further? What if I didn’t hold myself back?’ I wanted to make sure that I went into this week fully giving 110 percent. If I succeeded, I succeeded, if I didn’t, I didn’t, but I would know that I left it out on the floor—

Bala: And you succeeded.

Bhattad: It all worked out.

Johnson: — Yeah. I was lucky in that way, and several guys weren’t. But I’m proud of them because they pushed it all out on the floor either way, so like everyone succeeded.

Bala: And that probably pushed you too.

Johnson: Yeah, yeah, that inspired me a lot.

Parekh: For me, I’ve done debate for the past few years, I’ve done a little bit of Congress here and there. And then at Boys State in Alabama, I ran for lieutenant governor and ended up winning. And so I really got my first taste of it there and I thought that was super fun, something I wanted to pursue. And then a little bit later I got the chance to talk with former Sen. Doug Jones, and he really kind of told me, you know, being in Senate is actually a lot more fun than just rules and whatnot, and so I decided I would go for it. It all worked out for me.

Bhattad: Your speech was lovely.

Parekh: I got a lot of help.

Bala: For me, coming off of Boys State, in our state we had senators so I ran for senator and I got elected, so I was pretty happy about that. And after the election process, I was like, ‘This is pretty cool, this is pretty inspiring, this is something I want to do at Boys Nation.’ So coming into this week, I already knew I wanted to run for something, but I didn’t really know what that something was. But coming into Boys Nation and just seeing everyone, it was super inspiring. So I wanted to go for a role that actually did something in the Senate — the others laugh — so I ran for secretary of (Senate) because it’s that perfect balance of doing things but also not being the direct center. It’s a rewarding experience—

Johnson: Like a service leader kind of role?

Bala: Yeah, exactly.

An environment of support

Bhattad: They definitely talk a lot about servant leadership. I think there’s other roles, like president and VP obviously are more outspoken about leadership—

Bala: Like the figureheads of Boys Nation—

Johnson: But I think it’s great because, like in my role, when I was running for president, I stood no chance by myself, I had a whole campaign team of guys preparing stuff and helping me get ready for debates and studying on policy; I had friends of mine that were helping me, they were staying up until like 12:30 at night researching policy for me to look over before the debates, and like people that were helping me practice that went to nationals for debates and stuff, people were making Canva posters to put on Instagram. It takes a village and I had a whole group of people behind me, they pushed me up to that level.

Bala: That’s what I think is so good about Boys Nation, because everyone … we’re all from diverse backgrounds. I’ve literally never met a farmer in my life, but I met Matthew Hardy (one of the Boys Nation senators from Iowa), I’ve never met someone from Alaska in my life, I’ve never met people with different political opinions, different ideological beliefs, but you have 100 diverse people from every part of this nation, but somehow we’re all able to work together and worked electing you — (gestures to Johnson and Parekh) — to making this a prosperous community, nation, whatever you want to call us.

Bhattad: I know for me, like early on, our elections — (gestures to Bala) — were the second day of Boys Nation. A lot of kids weren’t even there because of flight delays and everything. I think it was so cool, because I’ll be really honest, I spent maybe max an hour politicking, actually going around lunch table to lunch table. I think my race was interesting, because when we got to presidential and vice presidential debates, even like Senate leader debates, I think things got political pretty fast, and then I think people, even though we’re not supposed to, they started honestly leaning into their ideological beliefs, right? But for our races — (gestures to Bala) — I thought it was a lot more based on, like, genuine, how much is this person somebody I see in a position of leadership. Our races were really not partisan. A lot of people skills, and how can you rally 100 kids who have never met before and never talked to each other aside from online media?

Bala: Yeah, and I was going to say, I was considering like sharing for president and VP, secretary of the senate, president pro tempore, and then I was thinking that we all have diverse ideological beliefs, and to me, that would be a problem because it would put me in a position where I would feel uncomfortable with saying my political beliefs just because I know I would lose some votes for that. So running for secretary (of the senate) was a good way to balance it out, but also to really lean in on my people skills, leadership ability, and genuinely, the connections I made the first two days.

Johnson: On that, I love how we have cultivated an atmosphere like where we solely uplift each other. Sure, it’s like a competitive environment, but like, the first thing that happened after the presidential election, when they announced the winner, the first thing we did was me and (Arkansas Senator X’zaeviun) Sims (Johnson’s opponent in the presidential election) hugged each other. And people were cheering for him during the debates and cheering for me during the debates, and during the pro tem elections, everyone’s getting up and like, ‘Yeah!’ for Yosef (Herrera of Texas, who was also running for president pro tem) and Eshaam, and everybody was like, even though they weren’t the ones that may have been gaining the ultimate benefit from it, they just enjoyed the process and pushing everybody up and seeing other people succeed, and I think that mindset, and developing that mindset is much more important in life than just an office for a week.

Parekh: I couldn’t agree more. I think the best part about actually becoming vice president is talking to people and like moving out of your shell, right? … I wouldn’t have known (Matthew) Hardy was a farmer and he loved to party if I didn’t go up and talk to him. (The others laugh). At the end of the day, I think more important than the position was, not to sound corny, but the friends we made. And so like, I think that going for a position actually helped me make more friends at the end of the day than just kind of sitting there.

It's the connections

Bala: Honestly, I’m going to be really sad tomorrow because tomorrow’s the last day.

Bhattad: Yeah, if I’m being completely honest, when I got to Boys Nation, I was out of it. I flew in from somewhere else and I was physically and mentally drained, I was just trying to make it day by day. I’ve got eight days of this, I’m just waiting for it to be over, right? So when I got to my dorm room, I remember, I sat on my bed for like 15 minutes and my roommate didn’t come until like 9 p.m. So I was just there, I was like … so exhausted from flying and all the layovers and everything. And then I remember I just walked outside, I might as well try and be social, do something, right? I’m here. I remember actually I went down to the first floor, and it was the most random event, there were a bunch of guys playing Risk. So I’m gonna grab some Uno, let’s get a game going. There were no normal cards. It was like a giant pack of Uno, hardest thing to shuffle, hardest thing to distribute, but honestly from that moment everything got better. Every day just built on each other, and yeah, I’m literally with you, tomorrow’s going to be so sad. I’m going to miss all you guys. I’m going to miss the memories. I’m scared of leaving Boys Nation.

Parekh: Tonight I’m going to be stocking up on a bunch of energy drinks, I won’t sleep at all tomorrow. (Everyone laughs).

Johnson: Yeah, just have some fun with it.

Bala: I was going to say, going back to the very first day, I got here Friday evening, like the very first thing, I came in an hour late but already, I don’t know if you remember, but there was like 50 of us just chilling and chatting. Just having a good time from the get go; it’s going to be really sad tomorrow.

Johnson: Yeah, like on the flight here, and I was talking with the senator from last year that went from Oklahoma, and he was telling me, imposter syndrome hits hard when you get here. Because you’re surrounded by the smartest political minds from each state.

Bhattad: Hey, hey, don’t look at me. (Everyone laughs).

Johnson: Yeah. Some of them. But I thought that too. When I got here, I was in a group chat, Eshaam and I were, and there were a lot of guys, in the (weeks) leading up to this they were talking about political things and topics I never even considered before, and I was like, ‘Dude, should I even be here? These guys are crazy.’ But then like getting here, you realize that it’s more than just policy, it’s more than just politics, it’s the connections.

Bala: It’s people.

Johnson: You may not be the most well-versed policy person, and you may not be the most genius in the eyes of politics or political minds, but you can connect with people and you can bridge those gaps. Some people here, politics may not be their future career but they enjoy being here, they enjoy building those connections and learning from everyone’s lived experiences, what they’re passionate about, way more important I feel than like discussing election results. I think that’s one of the bigger lessons at work here.

Bhattad: I think that’s completely accurate. I’d say I’ve met so far at Boys Nation kids who want to be mechanical engineers, kids who want to go to aerospace, kids who want to fly planes, kids who want to be farmers, right? I think I’ve met way more than a future senator or a future president. I’ve met probably a leader in every major industry.

Bala: Future Americans.

Bhattad: I think that’s a great way to put it. There is so much diversity, not just in the people here but diverse ideas. I’ll be honest, I have my own political beliefs, almost ingrained in those, but I’ve never had the opportunity to have real political discourse. What does it mean to talk to someone across the aisle. I think it’s amazing, because I don’t think it’s things we see right now. In the world around us, especially in an election year, I don’t think bipartisanship is something we’re very familiar with. So it’s refreshing to get 100 kids together in a room, who might not have the same beliefs in any way, but have those conversations so helpful in bridging that gap.

Bala: When I was running, I was thinking about saying this one thing, and I never got a chance to say it. But the idea that I thought we could do with Boys Nation was, we made Boys Nation something bigger than us. Coming into this, a lot of us — 2024 has been a super divided year, Americans everywhere feel really divided — so we all came in, 100 young men from all across the nation, different political beliefs, different races, etc., so many differences, but we proved that if 100 young men from across every part of America can come together and work together, empower each other, collaborate and prosper in this one week, we sent a message to Capitol Hill and to 330 million plus Americans that unity is possible.

Johnson: It’s really humbling to look at, I feel like. And I think it really showcases the definition of the American dream. Because like all of us are from — a lot of guys are from tiny rural communities, places where they’ve never been exposed to ideas beyond what they have in their kind of sphere, and like coming from my perspective, I’m from a tiny town in the middle of nowhere, Oklahoma. Nobody here has ever heard of Wagoner, Oklahoma. And I love my town and everything, but that’s just the situation that I was raised in. And I think the ability to let where you are not dictate where you can go, and prove how far you can come, it’s like a really special part of this country.

Gratitude for the Legion

Bala: And the last thing I was going to say was, the monuments. Going to all the memorials, the monuments. The American Legion did a fantastic job of taking us to super inspiring places: the White House, I literally got to play volleyball in the White House.

Bhattad: I got to play cornhole.

Bala: I got to see the vice president speak at the White House, that’s like a once in a lifetime opportunity; I got to go inside the Capitol buildings, from the speaker’s balcony, right; we got to go to Capitol Hill and meet our senators, like who gets that opportunity? And I think it’s super inspiring.

Parekh: I think The American Legion did a great job making Boys Nation such a prestigious, highly esteemed program. Like me and Soloman (Arnold, Alabama’s other Boys Nation senator) stopped into Senator (Tommy) Tuberville’s office. I called them earlier that morning asking if we could stop by and meet him, and we literally just stopped in and asked if we could meet him. And they were like, ‘You guys are at Boys Nation, come on in, at 11 o’clock you guys can come back and take a picture with him.’ And I just thought that was such a cool opportunity. Because where else am I gonna meet people who I only see on TV, other than in D.C. in their offices. It really to me just humanized them and made the political process that much more appealing.

Bhattad: When they say it’s a week that changes a lifetime, I’ll be honest, I came to Boys State, I was like, ‘Nah, there’s no way.’ But leaving Boys Nation, I can understand that, right? Monuments are amazing, White House is amazing, Capitol Hill is, every monument we’ve been to has told some amazing story about the depth of human sacrifice and what we’re here for. But I think like the coolest part and the thing I will never forget from this experience, my Boys State, just everything The American Legion has done for me is the ability to give me conversations with other people. Going to Iwo Jima (Memorial), going to that monument, seeing that collective almost surprise in everyone’s face, that moment of reverence for the fallen soldiers and the people who have given everything they have for this country, is something that I don’t think I would have had the opportunity if I had not come here. It’s something also that a lot of Americans aren’t able to appreciate because they don’t have the resources to. So when they say it’s a week that you’ll never forget, it truly is something they mean; I’ll never forget this as long as I live, because it’s opened so many doors.

Johnson: It develops a really true reverence for this country and the ideals it was founded on.

A week of emotional memories

Bala: Am I allowed to ask a question?

I was going to ask, what’s like the one coolest specific experience you’ve had at Boys Nation this entire week?

Johnson: For me… I’ve got to say something. When we were in the Capitol, going into the ultimate rotunda and looking up and seeing just absolute magnificence, a dome so tall that the Statue of Liberty can be put in there and it still not even touches the top of the ceiling, that really resonated with me and being surrounded by statues of great men and women representing their states, coming into it with the reverence of representing our states and all our friends at Boys State and our friends from back home in our towns and our states, and realizing that we as a nation have the power to create beauty like this, we can create change. It was a really humbling moment.

Bala: The rotunda was absolutely magnificent. For me, I’d say the one specific experience would be going to the speaker balcony, because that, you see the Washington Monument, the entire skyline of Washington, it’s absolutely breathtaking. And I was just thinking, ‘Wow. This is where we can be. We can be on the top of the skyline, future leaders of America, looking across America.’ I had to stop for a second and be like, wow. Jaw dropping.

Parekh: I think for me the coolest experience was, I wanted to go to meet Congressman (Gary) Palmer today, because he represents my district. And I met him before, I was like, maybe I could sneak my way in — (the others laugh) — and his door was closed, I don’t want to bother him. And me and Inca (Shannon, one of the Boys Nation senators from Alaska) were sitting there for about two minutes, and we see him walking down the hallway. Nowhere else would you be able to see a Congressman just walking around the halls. I thought that was so cool.

Bhattad: I think for me, I don’t think there’s a single coolest moment I could pick, because there’s so few times I think I envisioned in my life going to the White House, or going to Capitol Hill, getting a private tour from a Congressman. I think what I’ll give you instead is the most emotionally challenging moment for me. I think that was the Pentagon Memorial. Because my dad, he used to work in New York when 9/11 happened. He would tell me stories of what that day was like for him. The TV screens turning, the reporting on the news, him hearing the thud of that building falling. It definitely holds a very special place in my heart. So to go there, to lay the wreath, to hear an amazing speech, to commemorate the people who lost their lives, started something in our country that has become so much bigger than us, something that has given them the reverence they deserve. I thought a lot there. I remember sitting down with a bunch of our fellow senators and just talking about it, talking about how powerful that monument is, how beautiful the symbolism there is, and just how much life was lost that day, how precious it is.

Bala: And being able to lay the wreath was—

Bhattad: Once in a lifetime.

Bala: Not even that, it was just emotional. (Bala and Bhattad laid a wreath at the 9/11 Memorial during Boys Nation’s visit to the Pentagon). When you lay the wreath, you’re honoring the people that lost their lives, the servicemembers in the Pentagon, and the American citizens on that plane, so it’s just, it’s really emotional. And you kind of feel a connection to your fellow Americans that lost their lives, but it kind of renews a sense of patriotism in all of us.

Johnson: It was really impactful for me, because every single specific monument in the entire memorial had a name on it, and what you could do, there’s a website where you could look up each person’s name and read a biography. And there’s a guy we were reading about that loved dancing and Rubik’s cubes and walking his dog. It really humanizes these people who you never heard of but they’re real people who made a real difference who loved their country. And it kind of made me think, in the end we can have these cool accomplishments, offices, Boys Nation, whatever you want to call it, but in the end, we’re just a stroke of a brush on the entire magnificent painting of American history and this great country. All we can do is try to make our stroke as vibrant as we can, and not for us, because it’s just a color without it, but we’re making the painting better for everybody to view and love. It really humbles where you are in the world.

Bala: And the monument, the memorial, the way it worked, each little section represented a life that was lost. And you would see, they would cut it off to represent the fact that they died so suddenly. And you could see how long they lived based on how long it was. And the most emotional for me was seeing the nine-year-old, the 11-year-old.

Parekh: For me I think the most emotional moment was talking to Dr. Happy (Settle, one of the Boys Nation staff), I believe it was at the Korean War Memorial? Him and Mr. Norm (Steen, another staffer) and them telling us their war stories. What it was like to be on a submarine and what it was like to serve in those times, how much pressure you felt, how you had to wake up at any hour of the day and be ready to defend your ship, not knowing if you were actually getting attacked or if it was a drill. Those stories aren’t really things that I get to hear every day, and I thought it was super inspiring, we really do stand on the shoulders of giants.

The things they’ll take with them

With the allotted time for the interview coming to a close, one final question for the quartet.

Question: What is one thing each of you will take away from this?

Johnson: For me, there’s a couple things. Personally I take away a level of confidence and belief in myself and the importance of that. It worked out for me, but in the end, it’s all about putting in 110 percent, because this one instance, it succeeded for me, but there’s going to be times where it doesn’t. But you always have to give 110 percent in everything you do, really dive into your passions and what you believe in and what you’re doing. It makes such a monumental impact on your life, and I’ve really just been empowered by this whole experience from that. And also a level of humbleness along with that. In the end, we’re all here with one goal, one mind, to make this country a little bit better. And just having such a fraternity around that, and my friends I’ve made this whole time, it’s been really great.

Bala: I think for me, the one thing I’ll get out of this is a sense of relief. (Others chatter). No, no, not because it’s over. But a sense of relief because coming into Boys Nation, I was really, not depressed, but a little sad about the state of America right now, and I was concerned about the future of America, because we’re supposed to be the generation that leads America. And it seemed to me that everyone was so divided. But I say I’m a bit relieved after going to Boys Nation because coming here, seeing all 100 young men, we have polar opposite young men coming together and banding as brothers, really inspired me that in the future I have more trust in my generation that we can actually be the generation that works together, that compromises, that loves each other as Americans and doesn’t hate each other and doesn’t divide our country, and let our country fall apart. So I have more trust in my generation, I have a lot more faith in America, and a restored and renewed sense of patriotism and pride in my country.

Bhattad: I think my one takeaway from Boys Nation is a lot more tangible, it’s the people, the connections. And I’m not just talking about our fellow senators, I’m talking about staff members, counselors, junior counselors. Because very honestly, while I’ve had amazing conversations with senators, it’s been incredibly humbling to talk to veterans, to talk to people who lived through experiences I never gotten to and probably never will have to because of their service. I was talking to my roommate about this, but it was, it is so rare for us to have the opportunity, not just to go to the White House, the Capitol rotunda, the speaker’s balcony, but to put 100 young men into a room together who on paper are so politically divided, from every end of the spectrum, every corner of the country, who are really committed to making a change, who are committed to having conversations, and veterans, Legionnaires who are willing to support that; that’s rare, and I think it’s an opportunity we genuinely won’t see in our lifetime. People who are incredibly talented, incredibly smart, all in a room together, 100 of us being able to connect and really make a difference. I think that is something that I hope when I leave this camp, I hope I still take some of those connections with me. I hope to talk to some of you, talk to veterans and counselors in the future. Stay connected with these amazing people I had the opportunity to cross paths with.

Parekh: Just like you, I think a lot of it is the people. Never would have I met someone from Alaska, unless it was for Boys Nation. I wouldn’t have met Hardy if it wasn’t for Boys Nation, I wouldn’t have met Michael—

Bhattad: You love Hardy. (Everyone laughs)

Parekh: I love Hardy. Hardy’s so funny. I wouldn’t have met Ben (Blackwood of Georgia) if it wasn’t for Boys Nation. Just getting to experience all these different ideals and policies come together, like you said, in a civil manner. Morgan and I had a conversation yesterday about voting rights. While we had different opinions on it, we didn’t hate each other afterwards, we’re still great friends. I know we’re going to continue to be. And it’s a one-of-a-kind, unique opportunity. And then beyond that, Boys Nation and The American Legion have really shown me how history can come to life and how it truly affects us, because a textbook can only show you so much, right? And being able to talk to veterans, look at monuments, and having people explain their experiences to you, and then being able to talk about those experiences with people with different ideas than you, really I think makes better Americans, makes more informed Americans. Like Bala said, gives me hope for our generation creating a better America.