Look at what happened in Shelby County (Memphis), Tennessee, last week.
https://crooksandliars.com/2018/08/weekends-shelby-county-tn-elections-were
“Tennessee is a pretty red state, with over 60% of the votes in the 2016 presidential election going for Donald Trump. The State Senate is comprised of 15 Republicans and 1 Democrat and the State House is split 74 Republicans to 25 Democrats.
“SO — imagine the surprise this weekend in Shelby County when Democrats won 21 out of the 26 seats up for grabs! Commercial Appeal reports that of the top 10 seats in the county, including mayor and sheriff, the Democrats managed to clinch EVERY. SINGLE. ONE.
“Prior to the election, Republicans held 9 of those seats. So not only did Democrats hold onto their one, but they flipped the other 9! Blue wave? Nah – that is a blue tsunami.
“Devastating is the only way to describe the loss. A wake up call. A bullhorn.
“The newly elected Mayor, Democrat Lee Harris, won by over 10 points. In Tennessee.
“So what does this tell us as we go look forward to the midterms in less than 100 days?”
Read it and find out.
The Republican base loves Trump but the base is shrinking. There are not that many racists and haters left.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
🌊
Well, there is the fact that Memphis is one of very few blue patches in Tennessee. Shelby County went 62.3% for Clinton in 2016 compared to 34.6% for Trump, so honestly, these new results are not indicative of a blue wave in a red state. They’re indicative of a very predictable blue wave in a blue city.
https://www.politico.com/2016-election/results/map/president/tennessee/
You’re of course right, it’s a blue county, but the blue wave was a sweep. Not sure what you mean by predictable here. Just because it’s blue does not mean you’ll get a sweep like that. Regardless, if the dems in general vote like this we will have a blue tsunami.
Disappearing comment again. Sorry if the original comment resurfaces at some point. I may be many things, most of them unpleasant, but I try not to be redundant.
In any case, Memphis is one of very few blue patches in an otherwise red state, so it is not at all surprising that these elections would go blue. Shelby County voted over 65% in favor of Clinton in 2016, so it’s no more surprising that they went blue now than it will be surprising when the Chicago City Council goes blue (again) even though much of Illinois is red.
cx, typo: over 63%, not 65%. Sorry.
Tennessee voting results from 2016, county by county: https://www.politico.com/2016-election/results/map/president/tennessee/
Dienne 77 writes to get converts to Koch’s “liberty amendments”, which eliminate Social Security via a balanced budget and repeals U.S. Senate elections, replacing them with appointments. Charles and David Koch’s other amendments can be found in an internet search for Nancy MacLean, Democracy in Chains. If Dienne 77 is a woman, her confidence is unfounded, if she thinks there’s not a plan to repeal a woman’s right to vote.
That is a ridiculous characterization of Dienne77’s political position. I read her post as a straightforward presentation of facts which warn us not to get overly optimistic, much work lies ahead.
Your characterization is way off. I read her post as a straightforward presentation of facts which warn us not to get overly optimistic, much work lies ahead.
bethree5,
Discernment is a skill, worthy of practice.
Don’t know how you got from point A to point K on this one Linda. Dienne is just laying out a few facts. If you believe that she is some kind of loonie right wing shill you’re wrong.
Dienne is frequently misunderstood. When that happens often, it is necessary to make your views clearer and explain why you are posting a comment.
Don’t blame the reader.
Shelby County is always democratic. That may be why the schools were taken over by the Huffman folks years ago. I always thought it was a punishment for voting for the democrats. I am not so sanguine about the general election. The democratic candidate for governor, Karl Dean, seemed to support charters when he was the mayor of Nashville, but that may have been for reasons I do not know. Phil Bredesen, the possible senator from the Democratic Party was the governor when we got the diploma project. His education policy, like Obama’s was indistinguishable from the republican view.
That said, I have not seen the democrats field this strong a group since Al Gore wisely fled the state to become Bill Clinton’s VP. It will be an interesting race here. Strong showings in Nashville and Memphis might tip a race or two toward the democrats. The rural parts of the state will go republican by at least 60-40.
Good points, Roy.
Karl Dean is deep into charters. Sadly.
“The Republican base loves Trump but the base is shrinking. There are not that many racists and haters left.” This statement is unworthy of a scholar’s blog, and is a misrepresentation of what Republicans believe and stand for. It is unthinking partisanship, the kind that the writer accuses the President of.
Sorry to disagree. Trump is a racist. I would not want my grandchildren to listen to the crude disgusting things he says to his fans or sit at my dinner table. I have standards of civility and decency. This vile man does not rise to my standards. How can I explain to my grandchildren that he despises people of color, mocks them, separates families and children, then “loses” the children?
If you are president of the Michigan Board of Education, how do you explain your state’s fall from the middle of the pack on NAEP to the bottom ten in the nation? Could it be all those for-profit charters looting the schools’ funding? Michigan is the only state where 80% of charters operate for profit. They profit but your kids lose. Shameful.
Thanks, Dr. Ravitch. 👍 Trump is a racist to the max.
And, not only are kids lost, some are also drugged. Disgusting.
Good questions.
“SHAMEFUL” is an under statement.
Real experience … can’t make this stuff up.
I had a person from Michigan call me after the election and this person actually used vile, racist words to describe people of color. I guess this person put me in that “bad” group and that is why I got the phone call.
I was shocked. I am a “brown” person.
Great Schools .org has to have made an error in profiling the school associated with St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Taylor, Mich. – 7 grades and 44 students?
Would a school model, that has fewer than 50 students, and covered a substantial number of grades between pre-K and 8, necessitate high tuition?
Is it Betsy DeVos’ policy plan to steer funds to the schools of the self-congratulatory “blessed”? Because as a taxpayer, it’s not a plan that works for me.
I think it is far to say that Reformers like DeVos don’t care what taxpayers think. If they did, they would not waste $1 billion a year on failing charter schools in Michigan and a similar amount in Ohio
Dr. Z,
You cannot speak for what Republicans as a group believe or stand for. And a group that enables a maniac POTUS doesn’t deserve generous characterization. Do you think this situation is going to be solved by scholars? Do you think we will educate our way out of this?
Think 🌊
Of course he can, because the Z-man believes the same as the crazies. He’s one of them. He was all-in for Ben Carson before he ended up supporting Trump.
He says Betsy DeVos is “is effective in the area of educational policy.”
He says concerns about income inequality are really just envy, and “If you envy the wealthy, your soul is in danger.”
And he dismisses the rampant corruption in the Trump administration by saying that during Obama’s presidency, Tim Geithner didn’t pay $34,000 worth of taxes over a three year period. Obama’s transition team turned up the error, and Geithner apologized, and paid, even though the statute of limitations had run out on two of those years. The Z-man would equate that with Trump’s failure to release his tax returns, and the multiple corruption scandals plaguing Trump.
And yeah, Z claims to be a “Christian.”
Thank you democracy, you nailed it. Rev. Dr. Z is popular with the tea Party crowd:
Manistee Area Tea Party Organization
July 23, 2017 ·
Note: Dr. Zeile will be speaking before our Tea Party group at the 6:30 p.m. Thursday Sept. 21st monthly membership meeting to be held at the Bungalow Inn in Manistee. The event will be free and open to the public.
PRESS RELEASE July 21, 2017 For further information- Dr. Richard Zeile (313.802.1146)
St. John’s Lutheran Church, 13115 Telegraph, Taylor, MI 48180
Explore the Tradition of Faith & Ethics in the Rough World of Israelite Politics!
There is still time to attend the class on “The Believer in Politics: a Study of I & II Samuel” with Dr. Richard Zeile, Co-President of the State Board of Education, and Pastor of St. John’s Lutheran Church, Taylor.
Rev Dr Z is all for charters, vouchers and home schoolers.
I take your point, D., but even a lunatic can’t speak for the asylum, unless delegated to do so.
Zeile is a prop for the oligarchy.
I didn’t hold Lutherans in contempt, until I read, at this blog, the condescension of their entitled, patriarchal representative, “Reverend” Zeile.
Akademos, my point is that all those in the Republican asylum are the crazies…and the Zman is as nutty and hypocritical as any or all of them. They are all bad news.
No more bipartisanship.
“Reverend” Ziele may not believe in bi-partisanship. He may be practicing the lessons in Paul Weyrich’s training manual, posted at Theocracy Watch. Taxpayers are exploited by the 80% ratio of for-profit schools, which will make them unwilling to fund local community schools. Ziele’s plan, like Koch Tea Partiers, may be to eliminate tax-supported education for the kids of labor and color.
Dr. Zeile,
Rank and file and elected Republicans don’t stand, they hurry behind the richest 0.1% licking up their drool. Trump does it for Putin.
Anyone who votes Republican undermines democracy. Since you have made yourself the arbiter of scholarly endeavor, read Democracy in Chains about the Koch’s “liberty amendments” and then report back to us. If people aren’t voting Democratic, WFP, Democratic Socialist or Green, they are not patriots and they don’t care about humanity nor the future.
Even some Republicans, and Republican political consultants, have called Trump out on his racism. Many old time Republicans, the old school guys, feel this is a vicious slur against the Republican platform. But the Republicans have gladly USED racism to gain power (Nixon’s southern strategy, Willie Horton ad, etc.)to the point where now the voters it attracted have taken over the operation. Trump is now what the Republican party is, and if you don’t like that, perhaps you should think about a different political affiliation.
The central question is “Why would anyone still vote for a Republican.”
Consider:
Under Reagan and Bush1, Republicans quadrupled the national debt. They lied and said everybody would prosper, but rich got richer and the poor got poorer.
Under Clinton, who raised taxes on the wealthy, not a single Republican in Congress supported him. The economy boomed, there was general prosperity for everyone, Clinton produced budgetary surpluses to pay down the debt. Republicans impeached Clinton.
Under Bush2, dire warnings of imminent terrorist threats were ignored in favor of a focus more supply-side tax cuts. 9/11 happened, the Bushies tried to cover up their derelection of duty, and they started a war against a country that had nothing whatsoever to do with 9/11 based on faked “intelligence,” and then refused to pay for it. Deficits and debt exploded, and all the surpluses were squandered. They broke the economy and then bailed out the big bankers and hedge-funders responsible for it.
Under, Trump deficits have spiked with more supply-side tax cuts for corporations and the rich. There’s lie after lie after lie after lie. And there’s the conspiracy with Russia to subvert the Constitution and the Republic.
As to the comment from Richard Zeile, you almost have to wonder if the dude has been in a Rip Van Winkle sleep. Or if he’s just lying. The Republican party has become a white nationalist party. There’s a reason that the alt-right and the KKK and the Neo-Nazis love Trump. He’s their boy, representing their “values.”
And speaking of values, in Michigan, where Zeile sits on the state board of education, conservatives have proposed alterations to the social studies standards, with “a draft that deletes references to gay rights, climate change and Roe v. Wade and removes ‘democratic’ from ‘core democratic values.’ ” There’s a reason for that. Republicans don’t like democratic values, which is why they keep trying to suppress voting, and why they are opposed to freedoms for ALL citizens, and why they reject science, and why they really don’t care that Trump conspired with Russia.
Zeile has claimed that he is ” healing from the ravages and delirium of sin.” If that were truly the case, then he wouldn’t be in denial about Republicans.
According to his Facebook page, Rev. Dr. Z is a fan of “conservative” icon, Rush Limbaugh. Excuse me while I barf. Limbaugh is not a conservative, he’s a far right wing flame thrower and crypto fascist.
And Zman claims to be a “Christian.” He even has a divinity degree. Obviously, he didn’t learn or understand much abaut The Gospels.
“Should Republican Billionaires Be Picking Democratic Candidates?” https://crooksandliars.com/2018/08/should-republican-billionaires-be-picking
This really ought to be front page news everywhere, because whether they should or shouldn’t do it, infiltrating the Democratic party with more Republicans IS what rich conservatives in the GOP are trying to do –again, as was done with Corey Booker, the charter school & voucher loving (supposedly) Democratic senator from NJ whose political career was bankrolled by the right-wing Bradley Foundation in WI.
Spread the news!
The goal is enactment of the Koch’s “liberty amendments”.
Without Bernie, the bread and butter issues, wouldn’t be in the media. For 20 years, the left’s “voice” was muted (or, worked against the common good).
The corporate-funded Center for American Progress, which was positioned in the media as the liberal voice, promotes ed. privatization and, also the voice of no tax increases to replace ed.’s funding cuts. CAP’s V.P. of Education Policy is former TFA. CAP’s recent recommendation for higher ed was strikingly similar to Marco Rubio’s.
Smartly, the GOP sold the worst candidate in history, based on his impact on the Supreme Court. But, the same message wasn’t turned to Hillary’s advantage. Why? CAP’s founder and continuing director were integral to Hillary’s campaign and therefore, her loss. Now, too late, Kavanaugh’s appointment raises awareness of the dire consequences to democracy!!!
Because CAP joins the “accountability” ed. chorus, belted out by DeVos, Duncan, and tech tyrants, it forces scattered proponents of public education to construct a defense. If it was otherwise, NPE would be able to argue from the stronger strategic position of offense.
What’s Corey Booker’s relationship to CAP? There’s a video on the internet of CAP’s founder, on a dais with Jeb Bush and Chester Finn, encouraging donors to fund privatizing candidates.
While Pres. Obama should have been elected twice, what was his relationship to CAP? Pres.Obama should have been able to promote his ACA effectively. He didn’t have a network like Fox to help him. But, to have older Republicans, still think in 2018, that their reduced health care costs, attributable to going onto Medicare, were because Trump rolled back ACA, is on him.
A little off topic…but it’s a good article:
https://www.truthdig.com/articles/neoliberal-fascism-and-the-echoes-of-history/
Thanks for the link Mamie!
Giroux is almost always spot on in his analysis of societal issues. A bit long of a read for most Americans but certainly a necessary and good read.
And from the last paragraph of the article,
“One step toward fighting and overcoming the criminogenic machinery of terminal exclusion and social death endemic to neoliberal fascism is to make education central to a politics that changes the way people think, desire, hope and act.”
I’m not sure HOW we can do that considering the current state of education in this country.
I’m not sure either, but it seems to me that to make “education central to a politics that changes the way people think, desire, hope and act” is an impossible, and perhaps not even desirable goal for public education. Where the problem lies then is “whose politics” are included in that term? And that is the sticky point. Is it the public schools’ mandate to do such a thing?
My reading and research leads me to believe that there is a simpler more attainable goal/purpose of public education: “The purpose of public education is to promote the welfare of the individual so that each person may savor the right to life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, and the fruits of their own industry.” That avoids the “problem” of determining whose “politics” will be taught/imbued in the curriculum.
It just hit me. I was having trouble believing, but now I see the light. A celebrity is actually underwriting a public school, not a charter, and strengthening the district. It’s true! Thank you, Lebron.
This is a tax-supported school with Lebron providing what taxpayers in Ohio do not–the many wraparound services students, parents, and caregivers need to gain traction against the intrenched poverty of students plus hope for the opportunity of this generation to attend college. I don’t know all of the details and some are probably still in the works. This initiative has been in the works for several years, unlike so many other pop-up star-funded charter schools.
Football star Deion Sanders started a charter school in Texas, which was a disaster. Andre Agassi pumped millions into his personal charter school, with his name, in Las Vegas, and it was the lowest performing school in the state of Nevada; it has been taken over by a NYC charter chain.
Many other examples of stars opening their own school to compete with the public schools and failing.