Honey, They Skunked the Kids

From The Boston Globe:

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Tuesday confirmed school choice advocate Betsy DeVos as Education secretary by the narrowest of margins, with Vice President Mike Pence breaking a 50-50 tie in a historic vote.

Two Republicans joined Democrats in the unsuccessful effort to derail the nomination of the wealthy Republican donor. The Senate historian said Pence’s vote was the first by a vice president to break a tie on a Cabinet nomination.

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Screwing America, One School at a Time

From AlterNet:

Since the 2010 elections, voucher bills have popped up in legislatures around the nation. From Pennsylvania to Indiana to Florida, state governments across the country have introduced bills that would take money from public schools and use it to send students to private and religious institutions.

Vouchers have always been a staple of the right-wing agenda. Like previous efforts, this most recent push for vouchers is led by a network of conservative think tanks, PACs, Religious Right groups and wealthy conservative donors. But “school choice,” as they euphemistically paint vouchers, is merely a means to an end. Their ultimate goal is the total elimination of our public education system.

The decades-long campaign to end public education is propelled by the super-wealthy, right-wing DeVos family. Betsy Prince DeVos is the sister of Erik Prince, founder of the notorious private military contractor Blackwater USA (now Xe), and wife of Dick DeVos, son of the co-founder of Amway, the multi-tiered home products business.

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Abu-Dhabi-Doo

From The New York Times (August 17th):

WASHINGTON — Erik Prince, whose company, Blackwater Worldwide, is for sale and whose former top managers are facing criminal charges, has left the United States and moved to Abu Dhabi, according to court documents.

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Not Smart

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — The U.S. State Department’s renewal of Blackwater’s contract to provide security in Iraq “is bad news,” an adviser to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said.

Blackwater guards shot and killed 17 people, including women and children, last September, prompting an outcry and protest from Iraqi officials.

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Get With the Program!

Looks like the White House is hosting a little soiree, complete with a concert!

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The Cookie Crumbles

From the Guardian Unlimited:

WASHINGTON (AP) – The State Department’s embattled inspector general, accused of impeding a Justice Department investigation of Blackwater Worldwide, announced his resignation Friday, saying a poisonous political atmosphere in Washington deters people from careers in public service.

Howard [“Cookie”] Krongard told President Bush in a letter that he would quit effective Jan. 15. He released a brief public statement that said recent congressional testimony and correspondence gives ample documentation of the reasons for his departure.

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Hughes Your Mama?

From the Washington Post:

Karen Hughes, the longtime aide to President Bush, announced her resignation as undersecretary of state yesterday, after two bumpy years in which she overhauled the U.S. approach to public diplomacy but did not make major progress in improving America’s image abroad, according to current and former U.S. officials and Middle East experts.

Back to Lone Star State she goes, following in the footsteps of the rest of the Texas Mafia crew.

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Prince of Darkness

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – The Iraqi government wants security firm Blackwater to pay $8 million in compensation to each of the families of 17 people killed in a shooting, a senior government source said on Tuesday.

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