Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Betsy DeVos Was a Hot Mess When it Came to Anything School-Related During '60 Minutes' Interview

Betsy DeVos Was a Hot Mess When it Came to Anything School-Related During '60 Minutes' Interview
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Betsy Devos, President Trump's Secretary of Education, describes herself as "misunderstood," and doesn't seem to understand how she's become one of this administration's most controversial figures. She's been a contentious choice for the position from the very beginning, with even two Republicans voting against her confirmation after her Senate hearing.

The Secretary made news once again on March 11 for an absolutely cringe-worthy interview with Lesley Stahl of 60 Minutes. Over the course of the interview, the same in which she can't grasp why she has become so "hated" by the American public, Devos struggled to back up her own school choice policies with any relevant data, appeared unaware of the status of schools in her home state of Michigan, and admitted she hasn't visited schools that underperform.


Ouch.

Even before her time in office, Devos has been an ardent of supporter of school choice.

Through the school choice system, public funds can be given to non-public schools (regardless of whether they are private, charter, or have a religious affiliation). As a private citizen, she and her husband, Richard DeVos of Amway, helped pass Michigan's 1993 law allowing charter schools, and public funding of private schools. Though their critics claim they're essentially attempting to privatize public schooling, the Devoses believe competition makes all schools in the area better. It's not unlike the free market; if students' parents can choose their children's school, so the couple's thinking goes, schools will be encouraged to make themselves as good as possible.

When Stahl brought up the subject, however, Devos struggled to defend her position.

Stahl questioned why money should be taken away from schools with struggling children, to which Devos claimed the government should be "investing money in students, not in school buildings; not in institutions; not in systems." When asked what was to become of the students who remained in the de-funded school, the Secretary referenced cities in Florida where mass exoduses from public schools actually cause those schools to improve. The status of Michigan, the state where Devos and her husband championed the charter system, became a sticking point, however, when the Secretary struggled to recall how public schools were faring. Stahl then delivered this scathing line:

...your argument that if you take funds away the schools will get better is not working in Michigan.

The clip concludes with Devos admitting she hasn't visited underperforming schools:

I have not intentionally visited schools that are underperforming.

To which Stahl replied:

Maybe you should.

To her credit, Devos agreed!

H/T - Huffpost, CNN, The Chicago Tribune

More from News

Dr. Mehmet Oz
Fox News

Dr. Oz Slammed After His 'Credit Card' Health Care Analogy Goes Completely Off The Rails

Snake oil salesman Dr. Mehmet Oz—now the administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services—was criticized after he tried to discuss U.S. health insurance providers' pledge to speed up the prior authorization process by oddly comparing it to a "credit card," underscoring just how much he doesn't understand the job he currently holds.

Earlier this week, major U.S. health insurers—including Cigna, Aetna, Humana, and UnitedHealthcare—announced a set of reforms aimed at simplifying the often frustrating prior authorization process for patients and providers.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Jon Ossoff and Russell Vought
@atrupar/X

Jon Ossoff Lays Into Project 2025 Architect For Trying To Gut The CDC In Fiery Takedown

Georgia Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff criticized Project 2025 architect and current Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought during a Senate appropriations hearing for the Trump administration's austere spending cuts that are currently focused on slashing the budget and workforce of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Ossoff pressed Russell Vought on the administration’s decision to cut the agency’s budget by nearly half and on the loss of roughly 25% of its workforce.

Keep ReadingShow less
Jasmine Crockett Calls Out Trump's Hypocrisy By Pointing Out How Melania Got Her Visa
Leigh Vogel/Getty Images for SiriusXM; Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

Jasmine Crockett Calls Out Trump's Hypocrisy By Pointing Out How Melania Got Her Visa

Texas Democratic Representative Jasmine Crockett pointed out President Donald Trump's hypocrisy on immigration considering how First Lady Melania Trump's pathway to citizenship was possible because she received an "Einstein visa," which is usually reserved for an individual with "some sort of significant achievement."

Speaking during a House Judiciary Committee hearing titled “Restoring Integrity and Security to the Visa Process,” Crockett noted that “the idea that Trump and my Republican colleagues want to restore integrity and security in the visa process is actually a joke," and harshly criticized the Trump administration's immigration crackdown and visa restrictions.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Jennifer Griffin and Pete Hegseth
The Hill

Fox Host Comes To Reporter's Defense After Pete Hegseth Berates Her At Pentagon Briefing

Fox News' chief political analyst Brit Hume came to the defense of Fox national security reporter Jennifer Griffin after their former colleague, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, criticized Griffin as the reporter "who misrepresents the most intentionally what the president says” in a Pentagon news conference.

Hegseth, a former Fox News anchor, had criticized media outlets—including his former network—for what he described as unpatriotic reporting. Hegseth took particular aim at early intelligence assessments suggesting that President Donald Trump's bombing of Iran may not have significantly crippled Iran’s nuclear capabilities.

Keep ReadingShow less

Teachers Share The Questions Students Asked In Class That Broke Their Hearts

Being a teacher is a calling.

It is not for the meek or weak of heart.

Keep ReadingShow less