Showing posts with label Secretary of Education. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Secretary of Education. Show all posts

Friday, September 4, 2009

PRESIDENT TO TALK TO STUDENTS




OMG, on September 8 the President is going to talk to American students about the importance of education and the importance of staying in school! Help! Help! The sky is falling!

Even though George H. W. Bush and Ronald Reagan gave speeches that were broadcast over public television to a number of school districts, some Republicans believe that Barack Obama’s speech is an obvious attempt to brainwash America’s school children. According to this view, if President Obama speaks to school children, it must be some kind of liberal plot. A spokeswoman for the Florida Republican Party says the President should not be telling children what to do. Evidently that means he shouldn’t be telling them to stay in school. Why doesn’t Obama take a cue from George W. Bush, who was in school listening to children read on 9/11? After he was told about the attack on the twin towers, Bush stayed in the class for another half hour. Perhaps he just wanted to know how the story ended.

If the President is allowed to talk to America’s students, the networks ought to allow Sarah or Rush or some other right wing nut to respond. They can tell the Republican point of view: Education ain’t going to do you no good nohow.

We can understand why Republican think that way. If kids get too much education, they won’t fall for right wing bullshit anymore.

Friday, August 10, 2007

PERRIN FOR SECRETARY OF EDUCATION?

BIDEN FOR SECREATARY OF STATE?

There is some speculation that Senator Joe Biden is really hoping to be named Secretary of State in the new Democratic administration. He seems too far behind to hope ever to get the nomination for president. Nor is he anyone’s first or even second choice for vice president.

However, the Delaware senator has some credibility as a candidate for Secretary of State. For some time Biden has been pushing a plan to pacify Iraq by dividing it into three semi-autonomic regions, one each for Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites. While the plan hasn’t attracted much support, it could be the way to fix the mess in Iraq, and the new Democratic president could choose Biden to supervise it. Biden insists he is not interested in that job, but you never know. Lots of things could change.

When we think of cabinet posts for the various Democratic candidates, we naturally wonder about Dr. Carl Perrin. Biden is a distant fourth in the polls, but Perrin is dead last. A few people think he has no chance of capturing the Democratic nomination. Like Biden, Perrin insists he is in the race to win the presidency, and nothing less.

Nevertheless, Perrin wonders, just out of curiosity, mind you, how much money does a cabinet secretary earn, and what kind of perks does he get?