Mike Pence Breaks Senate Tie to Confirm Betsy DeVos

For the first time in American history, a vice president had to vote in the Senate to break a tie on a Cabinet nominee, and Betsy DeVos was confirmed as Donald Trump’s education secretary. DeVos has no experience as an educator, or even as a public school student or parent of public school students, but she sure does donate a lot of money to Republicans.

Republican Sens. Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski could have stopped DeVos in committee, but instead they voted for her there, waited to ensure she would have enough votes, then took the opportunity to grandstand about how they couldn’t vote for her. Democrats were united against DeVos, and senators were flooded with calls opposing her nomination, but in the end, there weren’t three Republicans to vote against an unqualified, unpopular nominee. Republicans whose offices were getting so many calls against DeVos that voters couldn’t get through or even leave voicemails nonetheless voted for her.

Republicans own Betsy DeVos and all her works. They tried to hide her from the public, burying her speedy confirmation hearing in the evening. They blew off massive numbers of their constituents who let them know she was unacceptable. They brought Mike Pence in to cast a historic (not in a good way) vote to confirm her. She’s theirs. 

Unfortunately, now she’s in a position to ruin American public education.