Nick Jonas Meets Obama, Lobbies In DC

WASHINGTON — The youngest Jonas brother spent Tuesday lobbying Washington's power brokers on behalf of diabetes research _ starting with the big guy, President Barack Obama.

Clad in a white oxford shirt (no tie) and a gray blazer with the sleeves pushed up, Nick Jonas, 16, stopped by the White House for a photo with the president and children who are living with diabetes.

It was his second time at the White House this year. He and brothers Joe and Kevin hung out there with Obama's daughters, Malia and Sasha, on the night of Obama's inauguration.

After the White House, Jonas headed off to Capitol Hill for a private meeting at the office of Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J.

The teen idol and the senator made small talk about music while photographers snapped their pictures. Roughly a dozen Capitol Hill interns waited quietly across the hall from Lautenberg's office for a glimpse of Jonas _ no loud outbursts or attempts to sneak around security.

"I know some people can become star-struck and lose sight of what they're here for, but if Nick Jonas makes juvenile diabetes a cause that people are more aware of, it's worth it," said Ashley Woolos, an American University student and intern in the office of Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass. "A younger face might bring younger fans and the fact that juvenile diabetes is not just an older persons' disease."

Nick Jonas publicly revealed that he has Type 1 diabetes while performing at a Diabetes Research Institute fundraiser in 2007. He is scheduled to testify on Wednesday before a Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee hearing on federal funding for diabetes research. Other witnesses include boxer Sugar Ray Leonard and actress Mary Tyler Moore.

The Jonas Bothers created the Change for the Children Foundation, which donates money to charities benefiting children who are disadvantaged or ill. They released their fourth CD, "Lines, Vines, and Trying Times," last week.

Comments

[hopeformy3]

12:37 PM on 06/25/2009

I think it should be pointed out that Nick Jonas was not the only child with Type 1 diabetes to meet with the President.....Nick was there as part of JDRF's Children's Congress speaking to congress and the President about the need for federal funding to support research for a cure for Type 1 diabetes. There were also kids, normal kids, from all over the country who also live with Type 1 Diabetes and took part in the annual event. It should also be noted that only 10% of all patients with Diabetes have Type 1 or Juvenile Diabetes which is often misunderstood and receives far less attention and funding than the much more common Type 2 Diabetes. My son was diagnosed with Type 1 at only 18 months old, he's 5 now and I hope one day he will get to be a part of the Children's Congress....but a cure would be better.

[climatebabes]

11:48 AM on 06/25/2009

Why don't the insurance companies come up with money? After all, they pay for treatment and become more profitable if patients are healthy..

[timbo628]

10:42 PM on 06/24/2009

It's nice to see a young man like Nick become involved in this worthwhile cause. It speaks to the young man's character. As the father of a 13 year old girl, I have seen first hand the way that Nick, Joe and Kevin Jonas have always treated their fans with the utmost respect. By chance, my daughter ran across Nick at a local store here in the Dallas area. He graciously posed for a picture with her that was ultimately enlarged into a poster that graces her bedroom wall.

As a father, I appreciate these young men and I thank them for having a positive impact on so many young people. If I had been that famous and that rich at their age, I probably would have been a jerk. Kudos to the Jonas Brothers for all that they do! Kudos to their parents who did a great job raising them.

[TheBaffler]

09:40 PM on 06/24/2009

O will support this cause if it benefits big pharma more than the people suffering from the ailment.

[LMPE]

03:03 PM on 06/24/2009

At the beginning of 2009, I had never heard of the Jonas brothers (I learned about them on Huff Po). Now one of them lobbies Obama. Weird.

[William Bradley]

02:34 AM on 06/25/2009

O will support this cause because, among other things, his daughters love the Jonas Brothers ...

[DMITC07]

10:22 AM on 06/24/2009

"A younger face might bring younger fans and the fact that ***juvenile*** diabetes is not just an ***older persons'*** disease."

lol.

[MedinaM]

09:30 AM on 06/24/2009

While it's all for a good cause, it's somewhat unfair. I don't understand why simply due to the fact that Nick is famous, his cause is heard first and directly to the president and other legislatures. Again, I think it is a great reason to be out there and lobbying for. But there are a lot of other medical issues that are ignored, simply because the people that have it aren't famous celebrities.

[AGarcia]

12:16 PM on 06/24/2009

The Jonas Bros don't need single-payer healthcare.