Savvy Shields has only just been crowned Miss America, but she's already dishing out some sage advice to the US presidential candidates.
"I hope that at the end of my year, we're starting to reward politicians for compromise,'' says Shields, who also wants to help people make better food choices and dreams of being a backup singer for Beyonce.
Shields, who represented Arkansas in the pageant, won the crown in Atlantic City on Sunday night.
Asked during her onstage interview what she thought of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, she answered that while both Clinton and Republican Donald Trump have done a good job so far, `"they also need to watch what they're doing.''
"If you're trying to be leader of the free world, everything you say and do matters and all of your actions are held to a higher standard,'' Shields said.
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Meeting reporters after the pageant, Shields elaborated.
"What I want both candidates to focus on is compromise,'' she said. "Our country was founded on compromise. We're in a state now where both parties just seem to be yelling at one another.''
The first openly gay contestant in the Miss America pageant, Miss Missouri Erin O'Flaherty, was eliminated Sunday night when the top 15 finalists were chosen.
