Politico reports that Betsy DeVos is the single most unpopular Cabinet choice made by Trump, as judged by the numbers of calls and emails coming to senators.
It appears that all the Democratic members of the Senate HELP committee will vote against her, but so far every Republican is falling into line, despite her abysmal performance at her sole hearing. DeVos showed the public that she was uninformed, knew nothing about federal law, thought that federal protection for students with disabilities was optional (it is not), and displayed complete ignorance about higher education.
Despite all that, the hundreds of millions she has donated to Republicans may be enough to get her confirmed.
In an era when morality and ethics have evaporated, this makes sense. It compromises the credibility of everyone who votes for her and shows how little they care for the education of our children.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
The Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Education has issued a warning that charter schools posed a risk to the Department of Education’s own goals. The report says: “Charter schools and their management organizations pose a potential risk to federal funds even as they threaten to fall short of meeting the goals” because of the financial fraud, the skimming of tax money into private pockets that is the reason why hedge funds are the main backers of charter schools.
The Washington State Supreme Court, the New York State Supreme Courts, and the National Labor Relations Board have ruled that charter schools are not public schools because they aren’t accountable to the public since they aren’t governed by publicly-elected boards and aren’t subdivisions of public government entities, in spite of the fact that some state laws enabling charter schools say they are government subdivisions. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A “PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL” because no charter school fulfills the basic public accountability requirement of being responsible to and directed by a school board that is elected by We the People. Charter schools are clearly private schools, owned and operated by private entities. Nevertheless, they get public tax money.
Even the staunchly pro-charter school Los Angeles Times (which acknowledges that its “reporting” on charter schools is paid for by a billionaire charter school advocate) complained in an editorial that “the only serious scrutiny that charter operators typically get is when they are issued their right to operate, and then five years later when they apply for renewal.” Without needed oversight of what charter schools are actually doing with the public’s tax dollars, hundreds of millions of tax money that is supposed to be spent on educating the public’s children is being siphoned away into private pockets.
Charter schools should (1) be required by law to be governed by school boards elected by the voters so that they are accountable to the public; (2) a charter school entity must legally be a subdivision of a publicly-elected governmental body; (3) charter schools should be required to file the same detailed public-domain audited annual financial reports under penalty of perjury that genuine public schools file; and, (4) anything a charter school buys with the public’s money should be the public’s property.
NO FEDERAL MONEY SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO GO TO CHARTER SCHOOLS THAT FAIL TO MEET THESE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS OF ACCOUNTABILITY TO THE PUBLIC.
It is imperative that the U.S. Dept. of Education, cease and desist the deception of the American people. No Congressional obligation is greater than one that demands the term “public”, be used exclusively for public entities, not contractors.
The diabolical misidentification, is a plot, to eviscerate support for public education. Currently, aid to public schools is supported by 75% of the population. (Kaiser Family Foundation)
The richest 0.1% can’t tolerate anything good or anything from which they can’t skim a cut.
this would be good news, but if there has been a response in defense of the charters, I would like to see it……not to argue its merits as much as not to be caught by surprise by anything they might assert, no matter how ridiculous.
If by “draining the swamp” it was meant to make Congress more divisive along ideological lines, I think the new administration accomplished its declared mission. I called my Republican senator to no avail (apparently). Given the circumstances, what tools to we have to uphold well-established standards of practice that seem to no longer apply to the “alternate” university we have entered?
Don’t want to vitiate our protest against DeVos…but please add to it this info from People for the American Way.
Call Senator Feinstein to demand she vote against Senator Sessions for AG.
“Senator Feinstein, who has the immensely important position of ranking Democratic member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, has been emerging as a real champion in the fight to STOP SESSIONS.
Sen. Feinstein particularly values constituent phone calls, so she needs to hear from Californians now telling her, “thank you and keep up the good work!”
Please call one or more of Sen. Feinstein’s offices now to let her staff know her leadership is not going unnoticed and to help keep the wind in her sails. We NEED her continued leadership in this fight!
Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s Offices:
Washington, DC: (202) 224-3841
San Francisco: (415) 393-0707
Los Angeles: (310) 914-7300
San Diego: (619) 231-9712
Fresno: (559) 485-7430
The fight to stop Sessions from being confirmed as Attorney General is THE true test of whether Senate Democrats can band together and FIGHT against Trump’s dangerous and bigoted agenda.
Yesterday, Trump said he’d call for an investigation into voter fraud, likely as a pretext for heightened restrictions on voting and based on his own claims — without any evidence — that millions of people voted illegally in the 2016 election. He’ll likely instruct the Justice Department to carry out at least part of this witch hunt.
On issues of ethics, racial justice and civil rights, and more, Sessions has NOT been satisfactory or forthcoming in the information he’s provided to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
And as PFAW’s Marge Baker wrote in a Huffington Post piece yesterday:
It’s becoming more and more clear that we could have a president and attorney general who simply do not understand nor care that religious discrimination is at odds with the very fabric of our nation. Sessions was “deeply involved in the extended debate” over Trump’s planned orders. Just as disturbingly, in answers to Senator Coons’ follow-up questions after his confirmation hearings, Sessions failed to rule out mass internment of U.S. citizens and residents based on religious identity. While he acknowledged that the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II was “unjustified,” he would only state that internment shouldn’t happen “without a clear legal basis.” Our Constitution allows for no possible internment based on where people are from, what religion they practice, or any other factor. It’s ominous that the person who could be the next attorney general disagrees.
Tell Sen. Feinstein THANK YOU, and KEEP UP THE FIGHT! ”
I just called every number listed here…all were busy signals but some had voice mail and i left messages. She must hear from us all. She implied this week she will run again for office, so she needs to hear from constituents. Our other Ca. Senator, Kamala Harris is strongly and openly against both Sessions and DeVos …………and Pruitt and Price and Tillerson.and the whole pack of Trump swampy appointments..
A free and universal public education is critical to a healthy democratic republic. DeVos represents the worst possible choice for public education. Please contact your representatives, today!
Yes indeed,
I would suggest flooding Republicans and Democrats who have not made a public statement that they will vote no. Please remember to target senators, not members of the House. Point allies to http://www.senate.gov to easily find your state’s senators and the phone numbers to their DC and state offices as well as their email addresses.
Thanks for the reminder. I just sent another, more refined & personalized, pithy email to Sen Booker (who did not answer last month’s email, unlike Sen Menendez.) Deaf ears?
I tried to call Senator Cassidy (R-LA) and went straight to voicemail – but the mailbox was full. Apparently this has been happening all week. Sad.
Cassidy has been bought by DeVos, from the records Diane posted, he’s received something like $14+ million from her and her family. Letters to the editor and public demonstrations at his office are probably the only resort. He won’t change, but you have to make, as I remember from my Louisiana roots, her stink get all over him so that he won’t be able to wash it off when DOEd implodes. Same tactics with Kennedy, one of the lighter lightweights out there.
Not sure if this helps, but they have home and DC office numbers. Did you try both?
Ideally, you call both. For the DC office, ask for the Legislative Assistant (L.A.) who handles education issues. If they say they are not available, then ask for the name and ask to leave a message on their line and request a return message. For local offices, call the office closest to where you live and ask for the staff person who handles education issues or outreach. Do same with name as above and request a meeting with that person. The reason that it is good to get a local staffer to know you is, if you can develop a rapport with them, that they become an internal staff “lobbyist” to communicate with the DC L.A.
If they are on your side, always thank them and send follow up message naming the persons you spoke to.
If they are not, thank them for their honesty, let them know you will be in touch again (at least once every 3 months), and would appreciate the opportunity to sit down with them so that you can learn about each other’s positions.
The odds are very likely that DeVos will be nominated. The continued contacts are important so that they know you are paying attention. Once they get to know you, you become harder to ignore.
Effective grassroots advocacy is very labor and time intensive in spurts. It becomes an ingrained routine and, once you’ve done the hard work to start, only takes 10-15 minutes once every three months plus one or two personal visits per year.
Lastly, report back to organizations who are doing the same with a report on your activities. For example, you need to know who the lobbyist for OEA is. When they get to know you, they will contact you when something that needs grassroots voices comes up.
This is great info for would-be grass-roots activists, GregB. Copied to file, & thanks.
I am curious, since I’m not on any of the organizational lists other than BATS and NPE, what kind of messages those you who are members of NEA, AFT, or other education organizations are getting. I checked the Ohio Education Association’s site yesterday and was dismayed at the complexity, wordiness (me, complaining about wordiness!!), and less-than-assertive, not-very-urgent nature of the post. I also didn’t see any mechanism for people to report back so that they could get a picture of what their constituents were doing and finding out.
This is not good. With BATS and NPE I’m a bit more lenient, because I’m sure they don’t have the resources to do so. Wish I could help them more. But if there are not responsive lines of communication between members and the advocacy functions of NEA, AFT, etc., then it is going to be difficult to organize a strong, consistent resistance and build up the forces needed to be successful.
I called Brown and Portman. Portman sometimes sounds like a moderate- depending on when he’s actively campaigning or not- so maybe he’ll break ranks.
I’ll be shocked if DC rejects DeVos.
Her focus is their focus- limited to charter and private schools. All she has to do is guarantee to expand charters and vouchers and public schools won’t even be considered. They’re probably deal-making on it right now.
Throw in some face-saving pot sweetener for Democrats- some token amount for preschools, say, so Murray can say she drove a hard bargain-and they’ll all happily throw public schools under the bus.
Probably right.
I don’t know, Chiara, there is such a long record of public referendums against vouchers by large margins. And also recent strong defeats of attempts to repeal Blaine amendments in FL & OK. Seems to me the best approach is to skip mention of charters & just make it an all-out campaign against vouchers.
I’d be shocked to see any Republican step out of formation no matter personal convictions.
Also, the public should be aware that the federal voucher plan has already been decided.
Ed reform lobbyists are hammering out the details right now.
There won’t be any real debate or dissent or public input of any kind.
They’re currently deciding whether to issue vouchers thru the tax code or thru a straight subsidy. The ed reform consensus is vouchers are awesome and should issue ASAP.
Details/ cites, please?
I too, would like to see some details. As far as I know, there has only been a proposal to request congress to send $20BN to the states, and the states would then be free to set up a school choice/voucher plan, if they choose to do so. A proposal is a long way from a completed deal. And there are 50 states (plus DC) who would have to implement a plan.
“It is better to kill bad bills, than to pass good ones” -Calvin Coolidge.
Somebody compare Bill Gates and DeVos regarding expenditures to control what happens or happened to affect public education.
I am going to go back to my photography. There is only so much time in my life. Cannot fight against a corrupt government. All 3 branches are gone!
Then this shows that we DO NOT HAVE A REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT!
Name the Beast.
K-A-K-I-S-T-O-C-R-A-C-Y
Government by the least qualified or most unprincipled citizens
(from the Greek, kakistos, “worst”, origin of “Kaka”)
Start the paperwork for IMPEACHMENT!
I felt compelled to write this today after seeing Senator Alexander’s efforts to normalize Betsy Devos’ extreme ideas about public education.
Dear Senator Lamar Alexander. STOP COMPARING SCHOOL VOUCHERS TO THE GI BILL.
You are defending Betsy Devos and her goal to change public education into a system of private vouchers by saying that school vouchers are just like the GI BILL.
The GI bill was a special benefit to support veterans returning to civilian life. I know, because the GI bill made it possible for me to make it through college after the Vietnam war. This one time benefit for soldiers is far different than our public responsibility to provide for the education of the children in our communities. Each state’s constitution defines this public responsibility to provide for and oversee the compulsory education of the children in their state.
Our public responsibility to educate our youth is not the same thing as going to the grocery store to buy groceries. It is not about consumer choice. It’s about responsibility. Each community has the responsibility to create an equitable, safe, quality education for all of the children in their community. This responsibility includes providing an education that will enable students to become proficient in basic skills as well as to develop the habits and citizenship skills necessary to participate in our diverse democracy.
The entire public contributes to the common good for the children of the state, even if they have no children. Along with this responsibility is the expectation that students will receive a quality public education. I am contributing my public tax dollars to public education, not so a family down the street can feel entitled to send their child to private or religious school because the local school is not to their liking. If they are unhappy with their public schools, they can work with their locally elected officials. They can also choose to provide their own private school or home school their child. That’s their job and responsibility. In my community our school board offers both traditional as well as alternative schools and resources for home school families.
The choice movement wants to take away this public responsibility and oversight. All they want from the public is their tax dollars. They want private choice, not public choice, and they want you to pay for it.
Senator Alexander and Betsy Devos do not understand this sacred responsibility.
Hope you sent this excellent essay to Alexander. I have copied it to file & will send it to him myself if you don’t mind.
I don’t understand. How is using tax dollars to pay for educational costs at the university level, different from using tax dollars to pay for educational costs at the K-12 level?
I too, received federal tax dollars in the form of the GI Bill, Basic Grants (Pell Grants), and a subsidized low-interest loan, to meet my college expenses. I could have gone to a religiously supported university, if I chose to.
Now, people who are dissatisfied with the local public school, can move to a different district with a school to their “liking”, if they choose to. Isn’t this a type of “school choice”?
There are still a few more days. I would state that Hatch and one other Senator have a reelection in 2018. So the threat of reelection is not as effective. I do think that Collins may be “converted” she has voted with Gillibrand on many things. I am just stunned, that the Senate wants to ram these people through who are not qualified. I don’t remember this issue with President Obama.
Just went and read (once again) the definition of a demagogue. There’s a particularly good Washington Post piece about how Trump went from being a “garden variety blow-hard” to full on threat to our Republic. It’s by Michael Signer. https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/12/02/donald-trump-wasnt-a-textbook-demagogue-until-now/?utm_term=.40e07082b21e
To quote: “In 1838, American author James Fenimore Cooper observed that true demagogues met four criteria: they posture as men of the common people; they trigger waves of powerful emotion; they manipulate this emotion for political benefit; and they threaten or break established principles of governance.”
Of course, Trump fits the bill. I find the fact that he meets the fourth criteria to be especially troubling. He disregard for established norms, protocol, institutions and even the rule of law has set our country on a crash course with becoming a pseudo-democracy, a Potemkin republican. And, by aiding and abetting Trump’s dangerous choices (including DeVos) the G.O.P. is helping to seal our fate. If ever there was a need for genuine “Profiles in Courage” sort of behavior in our nation, now is the time. Will our United States Senators stand up for what is right?
I know people are always knocking Wikipedia. But just quickly read the list of “methods of demagogues” from there:
Sound familiar? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demagogue
The Washington political establishment seems like deer caught in headlights -stunned, unable to act.
Ironically, maybe the people, the majority of citizens that did NOT vote for Trump, are the only real check and balance on our nation unraveling right before our eyes. Perhaps that’s why Trump seems to be so obsessed with delegitimizing the very election that brought him to power?
The GOP is starting to crack a little bit… McCain and Thune didn’t like Trump’s order on torture and a TX representative who’s district is on the border thought the wall was a waste of money… MAYBE someone in the GOP with integrity will declare their unwillingness to oppose a clearly unqualified nominee…
The GOP loves clearly unqualified individuals.
Abigail,
The qualification for a post in the Trump regime is:
A) no qualifications
Or B) a determination to destroy the agency
You nailed that one Diane!
wgerson: I wouldn’t get too excited about these minor episodes. McCain and especially Thune have demonstrated a consistent fealty to the Republican Party line. These little blips only matter if they are followed by votes and consistent public statements. See the recent Rubio/Tillerson installment as the guiding example: get some credit for doing a minor thing, then proceed as usual. It will take a couple of years of medium-to-big disasters or a huge one before the Republican wall BEGINS to crack. It will take longer to knock out big holes.
Politics in this country is reprehensible. It has come down to pure mean-ness, a grab for power and money, and dominion over others. What a SOAP OPERA with contemptuous actors/actresses all dressed up.
I for one am ashamed of this most dysfunctional selfish country we have become with a totally broken two-party system. Now it’s voodoo over science. Wasn’t that era called: THE DATK AGES?