Most observers of the DC political scene think that Adrian Fenty lost to Vincent Gray because of the unpopularity and divisiveness of Michelle Rhee. A month after Gray wi, Rhee resigned and went on to create StudentsFirst, which has collected millions of dollars, mostly spent to elect Republicans in state legislatures.

Rhee may be out of DC, but her hand-picked team still runs the district. Gray may have won, but he dared not offend the city’s power structure by bringing in his own team.

Rhee’s deputy Kaya Henderson replaced her. Now Mayor Gray has chosen another Rhee clone to be his Deputy Mayor for education.

A reader sends this commentary and links to DC news:

“Greetings from DC. Just a few items that got my blood boiling.

“DC Mayor Gray – Appoints former TFA’er Abigail Smith as Deputy Mayor for Education

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/gray-names-abigail-smith-deputy-mayor-for-education/2013/03/21/d24decb2-923d-11e2-bdea-e32ad90da239_story.html

“A little background on: (previous Bill Turque article)

“Smith was a major player in some of Rhee’s most controversial initiatives, such as the 2008 closure and consolidation of 23 schools and Capital Gains, the now-defunct program that paid cash to middle schoolers in exchange for good grades and behavior.”

Also PG County Executive Seeks Control of Schools:

http://washingtonexaminer.com/p.g.-county-executive-rushern-bakers-school-reform-bill-moves-from-maryland-house-to-senate/article/2525100

Most prophetic comments: a press release from PG County BOE:

“Mr. Baker’s proposal reduces public oversight of schools and voids the rights of our parents, students and labor unions,” the statement says. “The bill resembles that of the D.C. school takeover by former D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty. However, similar to the District, the bill falls short and fails to address the core issues facing our community.”