In addition to endorsing Barack Obama for president yesterday, Colin Powell told Tom Brokaw on Meet the Press that he believes education is the most pressing under-the-radar challenge the next president will face. Here’s the quote: I think the American people and the gentlemen running for president will have to, early on, focus on education […]
Dana Goldstein
Dana Goldstein, a former associate editor and writer at the Prospect, comes from a family of public-school educators. She received the Spencer Fellowship in Education Journalism, a Schwarz Fellowship at the New America Foundation, and a Puffin Foundation Writing Fellowship at the Nation Institute. Her journalism is regularly featured in Slate, The Atlantic, The Nation, The Daily Beast, and other publications, and she is a staff writer at the Marshall Project.
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PALIN ONLY LOVES SOME PARTS OF AMERICA.
The Post reports that Sarah Palin is telling Southern voters that they are among a select group of pro-America Americans: Palin… made a point of mentioning that she loved to visit the “pro-America” areas of the country, of which North Carolina is one. No word on which states she views as unpatriotic. Hat tip: Jesse […]
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MCCAIN V. OBAMA: THE STAND-UP ROUND.
Over at Salon, Alex Koppelman has a good rundown of the funniest jokes from last night’s Al Smith Foundation dinner, an annual New York charity event where the presidential candidates appear every four years and traditionally roast each other and themselves. Video is below. McCain referred to himself as an “underdog.” Obama drank water, not […]
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DOES MCCAIN CARE ABOUT ABORTION? YOU BETTER BELIEVE IT.
One last thought to add to the discussion Scott and I are having about last night’s abortion debate: It has been said again and again that John McCain, though he panders to the anti-choice base, isn’t personally motivated by the issue and doesn’t feel particularly strongly about it. If that’s true, McCain deserves an Oscar […]
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SHOULD SEX OFFENDERS BE FORCED TO DISPLAY SPECIAL HALLOWEEN SIGN?
Via DCist and The Washington Times, this is a really weird story: The state of Maryland is requiring that on Halloween, sex offenders keep their outdoor lights off, not answer the doorbell, and oh, by the way, post this pumpkin sign on the window or door: Try not to laugh. In all seriousness, it makes […]
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FINAL DEBATE WRAP-UP.
Thank god these horse and pony shows are done with, truly. “Joe the Plumber,” if you exist, bless your heart, but I’ve never experienced a more irritating gimmick than your insertion into this debate. The economic crisis? It has been boiled down by moderator after moderator this season into a contest on which candidate is […]
Posted inEducation in America
OBAMA STRADDLES THE EDUCATION DIVIDE.
He’s for public school choice, not for vouchers that give families a tiny bit of money to attend an inner-city parochial school. Key distinction. —Dana Goldstein
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UNFORTUNATE PANDER.
Has localism in education really “served us well,” as Obama claims? No way. It’s the reason why states are allowed to set their own narrow, way-too-easy NLCB standards, and then “pass” them with flying colors, giving us no real metric of how well our kids are doing. —Dana Goldstein
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THE ABORTION DEBATE.
McCain appears to be taking elocution lessons from Palin. When asked if he’d ever appoint a Supreme Court justice who disagrees with him and supports Roe, he said: I would consider anyone in their qualifications. I do not believe that someone who has supported Roe v. Wade would be part of those qualifications. Whaaaa? And […]
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IS SARAH PALIN A LEADER ON DISABILITY ISSUES?
Not so much; Obama was too kind to recognize her “work” on these issues. Palin has a disabled infant. But she has no policy record on disability issues. —Dana Goldstein
