DeVos Nomination Is the Most Contested Because It’s About the Future

 

The Betsy DeVos nomination proved to be the most contentious; the hill Democrats have chosen to die on. Why? Because it’s about the future:

  • The future of the teachers’ unions, who had much of their power stripped from them in Wisconsin with the passage of Act 10, and who barely survived losing power in California due to 4-4 Supreme Court tie in Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association et. al.
  • The future of the Department of Education in whether it will be greatly scaled back or allowed to remain largely intact and in the future return to its practice of “Dear Colleague” letters to universities, school districts, etc. dictating the abandonment of due process for the accused and imposing radical social policy with the threat of federal lawsuits.
  • The future of whether states, municipalities, and most importantly parents will have the freedom to determine the opportunities available to children — charter schools, school choice, home schooling, in addition to public schools — or fewer choices due to further and further regulations dictated by federal bureaucrats in Washington beholden to the interests of teachers’ unions.
  • The future of what is taught to children — does the federal government know better than you what your children should learn in school? A federally determined curriculum reaches more students if more students are forced to remain in the public schools. Progressive ideology must be taught to the next generation. A DeVos-run Department of Education will hopefully abandon central planning style Common Core curricula and return that power to the states.

Betsy DeVos has the opportunity to do so much good and bring to an end so much Education departmental overreach and abuse of power. The Democrats were desperate to prevent this from happening. It’s all about the future.

Published in Education
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  1. Isaac Smith Member
    Isaac Smith
    @

    DJ EJ (View Comment):
    Just today, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has introduced H.R. 899, a one-sentence long bill which would eliminate the Department of Education in its entirety by the end of 2018.

    It needs to get added to the budget to have a prayer in the Senate.

    (EDIT:  I think, based on my understanding of the budget resolution exception to the filibuster.)

    • #31
  2. barbara lydick Inactive
    barbara lydick
    @barbaralydick

    When Bill Bennett headed the Ed Dept under Reagan we all thought the sunrise was imminent.  Unfortunately, this was not to be as the bureaucracy was so embedded with Progressives even at that time that it became nearly a fool’s errand.  He truly tried. Let’s not get too excited for Betsy, but hope that some weeding out will take place and changes made for the better.  Changes that will stick that is.

    • #32
  3. DJ EJ Member
    DJ EJ
    @DJEJ

    Isaac Smith (View Comment):

    DJ EJ (View Comment):
    Just today, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has introduced H.R. 899, a one-sentence long bill which would eliminate the Department of Education in its entirety by the end of 2018.

    It needs to get added to the budget to have a prayer in the Senate.

    (EDIT: I think, based on my understanding of the budget resolution exception to the filibuster.)

    My optimism at this bill getting anywhere is almost non-existent. I do, however, enjoy the trolling of the left that has been occurring in relation to it. That is, if Betsy DeVos is uniquely unqualified, the destroyer of public schools in Michigan, the worst thing ever to happen to the Department of Education, then you should support H.R. 899. It’s the only way to stop her now that she’s been confirmed.

    Incidently, the most recent Mad Dogs & Englishmen podcast had some good discussion of the DeVos confirmation, teachers’ unions, etc. as well.

    • #33
  4. David Carroll Thatcher
    David Carroll
    @DavidCarroll

    The left’s hyperventilation on the nomination has been something to see.

    • #34
  5. Leigh Inactive
    Leigh
    @Leigh

    Misthiocracy (View Comment):

    Leigh (View Comment):
    Yes. But conservatives should remember this: Betsy DeVos could do absolutely everything right and it will make absolutely no difference in the classroom — unless the states also gets things done.

    It really, really matters who is in the state education offices over the next few years.

    And some states will do better than others, and the ones that don’t do as well can learn from the ones that do, or they can choose otherwise and see their enrollments plummet, and parents can move to different jurisdictions that do things differently, as it should be.

    Folk aren’t looking for utopia here. Folk are looking for a paradigm where different jurisdictions have the freedom to try different strategies.

    I know, and I’m not trying to dampen anyone’s excitement about DeVos. Just trying to focus conservative attention where it really matters.

    • #35
  6. Misthiocracy Member
    Misthiocracy
    @Misthiocracy

    barbara lydick (View Comment):
    When Bill Bennett headed the Ed Dept under Reagan we all thought the sunrise was imminent. Unfortunately, this was not to be as the bureaucracy was so embedded with Progressives even at that time that it became nearly a fool’s errand. He truly tried. Let’s not get too excited for Betsy, but hope that some weeding out will take place and changes made for the better. Changes that will stick that is.

    The Republicans also didn’t have the votes in Congress during Reagan’s tenure.

    They do now.

    (Of course, they also had the votes during Dubya’s tenure…)

    • #36
  7. barbara lydick Inactive
    barbara lydick
    @barbaralydick

    Misthiocracy (View Comment):
    The Republicans also didn’t have the votes in Congress during Reagan’s tenure.

    They do now.

    (Of course, they also had the votes during Dubya’s tenure…)

    But then, Dubya wasn’t of the mindset to make major changes…

    • #37
  8. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    barbara lydick (View Comment):
    But then, Dubya wasn’t of the mindset to make major changes…

    Except in Iraq, where he first blew things up and then thought about how to fix them. Sort of like Obama was doing with health care before he got interrupted.

    Or maybe he was of the idealist school of American Exceptionalism (which we’re discussing in another thread) where people imagine that what matters is having the right ideals, with the assumption that the rest will follow.

    • #38
  9. I Walton Member
    I Walton
    @IWalton

    Isaac Smith (View Comment):

    I Walton (View Comment):
    The episode should inform our President that there is no dealing with the teachers union or the educational establishment in general. Whether Devos is approved or not, he needs to strip states of all Federal educational funding that do not offer choice to parents, who continue to fund overloaded educational bureaucracies, and do not have right to work laws. They will scream hysterically no matter what is done, so do something to begin killing these parasitical portions of the Democratic party’s corrupt machine. What is there to lose? They have declared war on the Administration, on the Republican party and on our kids.

    I don’t know the details of the programs overseen by DOE, but I doubt they have that much discretion. Certainly the budget process gives the Republicans the opportunity to move limited spending related legislation that is not subject to filibuster.

    It is a matter of leadership.  She gives the President the data and simplified arguments he uses to get Congress to back sweeping reforms. The Administration goes for it with ideas simple enough to defend on the high ground of principle focus on kids and parents.   They can win this one if they want to.

    • #39
  10. barbara lydick Inactive
    barbara lydick
    @barbaralydick

    The Reticulator (View Comment):
    But then, Dubya wasn’t of the mindset to make major changes…

    I meant this in respect (mostly) to the Dept of Ed

    • #40
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