https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/07/us/politics/betsy-devos-education-secretary-confirmed.html?_r=0 We are so very, very fucked... it is official now - to get a leading seat in this government, all you have to do is donate enough money - qualifications don't mean a thing!
No they don't. But hey, at least American children won't have to worry about grizzly bear attacks, because she will make sure they all have guns. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! It's hard to make this shit up. It's difficult to imagine a more clueless Secretary of the Department of Education.
If 2018 doesn't see a massive flipping of the House and Senate, and 2020 doesn't see a truly forward thinking candidate put in office, we can kiss our future generations ability to think (at all) goodbye. On the plus side, if they can't think, they can't realize how screwed they are... so... yay? Here we are, running full tilt towards a Brave New World...
But they won't have to worry about grizzly bear attacks. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
I think she's going to prove the US doesn't need a Department of Education - at least, not one with Cabinet level authority and coercive power. Then Trump can move her to FEMA, where she is likely to do a heckuva job.
I am sorry to say I don't have much faith in Americans to a) understand the issues b) move past tribalism and c) get out and vote. The fact we have a President Trump and his co-chair Steve Bannon ( and his soft holocaust denial) America’s place in the world will never be the same. While we might someday restore a bit of our strength and grace, we will not recover from Trump. Not completely. Not ever. The Brave New World began January 20th 2017.
See, the thing is that Republicans complain the government just doesn't work. And when it comes to Donald Trump's nigh on sixty-three million voters, proving that thesis is exactly #WhatTheyVotedFor.
And they kept calling Hillary crooked? Here’s How Much Betsy DeVos And Her Family Paid To Back GOP Senators Who Will Support Her
#racism | #WhatTheyVotedFor Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! So, right. Just another accident, you know? The Secretary of Education just happens to commit a racist gaffe? No, we're not coddling this bullshit. The lede, via the New York Times↱: Facing a fierce backlash after she called historically black colleges and universities "real pioneers" of school choice, Betsy DeVos, the education secretary, spent Tuesday afternoon backtracking on the controversial statement and highlighting the institutions' roots in racism and segregation. The written statement↱, in toto: A key priority for this administration is to help develop opportunities for communities that are often the most underserved. Rather than focus solely on funding, we must be willing to make the tangible, structural reforms that will allow students to reach their full potential. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have done this since their founding. They started from the fact that there were too many students in America who did not have equal access to education. They saw that the system wasn't working, that there was an absence of opportunity, so they took it upon themselves to provide the solution. HBCUs are real pioneers when it comes to school choice. They are living proof that when more options are provided to students, they are afforded greater access and greater quality. Their success has shown that more options help students flourish. Their counsel and guidance will be crucial in addressing the current inequities we face in education. I look forward to working with the White House to elevate the role of HBCUs in this administration and to solve the problems we face in education today. (She recited remarks↱, as well.) And the critique: Education Secretary Betsy DeVos drew wide-spread criticism after describing historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) as "pioneers when it comes to school choice"—prompting lawmakers to slam the remark as everything from "tone-deaf, uninformed" to "totally nuts." (Zoppo↱) † DeVos is an ardent supporter of diverting federal funds to school choice, or alternatives to public schools. In her statement, she said a key priority for the administration is to develop opportunities for underserved communities through funding and structural reforms, just as HBCUs have done "since their founding." She praised the schools for identifying a system that wasn't working—"an absence of opportunity"—and taking it upon themselves "to provide the solution." "They started from the fact that there were too many students in America who did not have equal access to education," she said of the schools. "HBCUs are real pioneers when it comes to school choice. They are living proof that when more options are provided to students, they are afforded greater access and greater quality." However well-intentioned, her statement triggered backlash among HBCU supporters who said she failed to acknowledge the real reason for their creation. HBCUs arose in response to racist Jim Crow laws in the American South that enforced segregation, shutting out black students from traditionally white schools with a few exceptions. (Grinberg↱) † First of all, it sounds like a seventh-grader wrote this, which is perhaps what happens when you put someone who has never really had a real job in charge of the Department of Education. Second, this official 2017 federal government press release celebrates legal segregation (!!!) on the grounds that the Jim Crow education system gave black students "more options," as if there was a robust competition between HBCUs and white universities for their patronage. (When black Mississippian James Meredith chose the "option" of enrolling at the University of Mississippi in 1962, a massive white mob formed on the campus; two people were shot to death and hundreds injured in the ensuing battle/riot, during which federal marshals came under heavy gunfire, requiring the ultimate intervention of 20,000 U.S. soldiers and thousands more National Guardsmen.) (Mathis-Lilley↱) † HBCUs rose to prominence in the years after the Civil War and through Jim Crow, when public institutions still excluded black students—requiring the establishment of colleges where they could study. They were in many cases pioneers of school choice in the same sense that the emergence of the Negro Leagues in baseball was about choosing to diversify professional sports. It wasn’t about more options being available—it was about having an option, in many cases. (Bump↱) This wasn't an accident. ____________________ Notes: Alcindor, Yamiche. "After Backlash, DeVos Backpedals on Remarks on Historically Black Colleges". The New York Times. 28 February 2017. NYTimes.com. 28 February 2017. http://nyti.ms/2mCQrri Bump, Phillip. "The Conway picture is only a small error in Trump’s swing-and-a-miss black college event". The Washington Post. 28 February 2017. WashingtonPost.com. 28 February 2017. http://wapo.st/2lUaKkg Press Office. "Statement from Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos Following Listening Session with Historically Black College and University Leaders". U.S. Department of Education. 28 February 2017. Ed.gov. http://bit.ly/2mCMD9C —————. "U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos' Prepared Remarks at HBCU Congressional Luncheon in Washington, D.C.". U.S. Department of Education. 28 February 2017. Ed.gov. http://bit.ly/2lwW2Pb Grinberg, Emanuella. "DeVos under fire for calling HBCUs 'pioneers' of school choice". CNN. 28 February 2017. CNN.com. 28 February 2017. http://cnn.it/2lndrZF Mathis-Lilley, Ben. "Insane Betsy DeVos Press Release Celebrates Jim Crow Education System as Pioneer of 'School Choice'". Slate. 28 February 2017. Slate.com. 28 February 2017. http://slate.me/2m5hVYE Zoppo, Avalon. "DeVos Slammed as 'Totally Nuts' for Calling HBCUs 'Pioneers of School Choice'". NBC News. 28 February 2017. NBCNews.com. 28 February 2017. http://nbcnews.to/2l9LvNw
