A highlight of the North Carolina lawmakers’ Florida trip was a $500 luncheon with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush at the Biltmore Hotel, a 150-acre tropical resort in Coral Gables, Fla.
Bush is a major figure in the conservative education reform movement, and now heads the Foundation for Excellence in Education, a think-tank seeking to overhaul the country’s educational systems through policies like ending teacher tenure, expanding the use of charter schools and school vouchers, and the increased use of virtual education.
The N.C. lawmakers also heard from Florida legislators who supported the tax credit program and businesses that benefited from it. They also went to a private school in Miami that enrolls students through the scholarship program.NC ethics laws bans gifts to lawmakers, including trips to fancy resorts in Florida if the host is pushing an agenda, and we do believe an agenda was being pushed up Sen. Soucek's willing snout in Florida, without much resistance.
Soucek got a lot more out of the trip besides some shrimp cocktail for lunch. After he returned from junketing, he got a nice check for $2,000 from the Partners for Educational Freedom, a political-action committee associated with Parents for Educational Freedom.
And that's what they call pay-to-play, folks. Soucek perhaps calls it manna from heaven. By any name, it's influence-buying.
18 comments:
Jeb Bush is the most dangerous man in Florida. Public education is in constant peril. Dan S. must now be considered a very dangerous person.
How could he have claimed poverty to get his daughter into the more at four program when they at first allowed in just the neediest families? That seems so hypocritical in the face of all this.
Children are off limits. You are lower than dirt to bring a man's child into this discussion.
Who said he "claimed poverty"? If you have something to show that his children were not eligible for the program, then you should disclose it. Don't you people even consider that if there was some real scandal there he would have been exposed long before this? You don't get through a nasty political campaign without having every aspect of your activities examined by the opposition. Since their have been ZERO reports of any wrongdoing on his part with regard to his children in the more and four program, it's safe to assume that you don't have anything!
Soucek has been in office one term. During that term, he supported de-funding the "More at Four" program, and then signed his own kid up for it. He hasn't been in a race since then, until now, and I doubt his opponent has any money to 'examine every aspect of his activities'.
It's my understanding that the More at Four program is designed for lower-income families with children at-risk for learning problems in school and, later, not graduating from high school. As someone who doesn't personally know Soucek but is aware he owns more than one rental house in Blowing Rock (a rather pricey real estate market), I'm puzzled about how his kid qualifies for such a program.
Note: I'm not attacking the child, I'm puzzled about the Politician Father.
I wonder how you people know what somebody else's financial situation is and why you think his children should not get government programs that yours co.
Jeb Bush is pushing a step toward privatizing education and coincidentally his brother Neil owns an education software company. I'm sure that there is absolutely no connection.
I agree. There is no connection unless you are saying public schools will not keep up with technological advances in education by purchasing software.
This blog is pretty good about making unsubstantiated allegations....Tillis staffer "screwing lobbyist", Soucek claiming poverty, .....just make up what you want to and publish it here....well, as long as it's a conservative you are lying about!
The bill is on the table in Raleigh. Do you conservatives really want to give your tax money to private educational concerns?
If it costs the state apx 8000 to educate a student, and if the parents move that student to a private school and the state rebates them say...$5000.00 toward their costs, then the state has saved $3000 on the cost of educating that child.
Sounds like a good deal for the state, a better education for the student and a break for the taxpaying parents.
Of course the Teachers Union would probably lose a member or two since the public school population would be less, but I (for one) can live with that.
Well, maybe it would be more efficiently used than with public education. It certainly could not be worse.
Candidate financials are a matter of public record, not conjecture. and if giving tax money to private companies is "conservative", I'm the King of Prussia.
At least Las Vegas shows you a good time while they take your money, sounds so good, too bad it doesn't work.
Anonymous said...
"Candidate financials are a matter of public record, not conjecture. and if giving tax money to private companies is "conservative", I'm the King of Prussia."
What "candidate financials" are you talking about? Are you the same idiot anonymous who said Soucek was "claiming poverty"?
If you are saying he "claimed poverrty" and that his "financials" are "public record", then, by all means, show us where he made that claim and cite the "public record" for us.
What happened to the link illustrating the condition of public education featuring the N.C. social studies teacher that was suspended for shouting at her student that he could be arrested for criticizing Obama? Did you have to censor it because it made to good of a point?
>What "candidate financials" are you talking about? Are you the same idiot anonymous who said Soucek was "claiming poverty"?
It was his candidate filing - and you can look it up as quickly as I can find it again. And I'm a different "idiot anonymous"...but at least I know how to find candidate financial reports.
So then, since you have nothing specific to offer - only a vague generality about candidate financial reports - what exactly are you talki8ng about? Is there a point you are trying to make? Are you saying there is something in his "financial report" that relates to enrolling his children in the "more at four" program?
If you have a point - by all means, make it!
Never mind...I'm sure it won't make any more sense than your comments to date.
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