What Senator Toomey Voted For

After at least one call for him to recuse himself from the vote to confirm Betsy Devos as Secretary of State Education (even after accepting tens of thousands of dollars from her in campaign contribution money) Pennsylvania Senator Pat Toomey, never the less, voted for her confirmation.[Error corrected.]

Something (some of your) constituents won't forget.

But now owns that vote - forever.

And forever is a long time, Pat. 

Now let's see what his vote got us.  For the science geeks out there, there's at least one troubling aspect of Devos' testimony.

From the York Daily Record:

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat from Rhode Island, said in the hearing that DeVos and her husband have contributed to the Thomas More Law Center, which represented the Dover Area School District in a 2005 lawsuit over the district's inclusion of intelligent design in biology class. Intelligent design is the idea that life is so complex it must have had an "intelligent designer." Ultimately, a federal judge ruled against the district.

"The 's' in STEM … is science," Whitehouse said, according to C-SPAN video of the hearing. "If school districts around the country try to teach students junk science, will the Department of Education be with the students or with the political entities trying to force junk science into the science program."

When she could have (should have) disavowed any inkling of "junk science" seeping into the nation's science curriculum, she didn't.  Her answer, instead, contained subtle nod to creationists everywhere:

"I think it’s pretty clear the expectation is science is taught in public schools, and I support the teaching of great science," DeVos said to the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. "Especially science that allows students to exercise critical thinking and really discover and examine in new ways. Science is to be supported at all levels." [Emphasis added.]

This is why.  From the National Memo:

At a confirmation hearing earlier this month, Betsy DeVos, President Trump’s pick for education secretary, responded to a question about whether she would promote “junk science” by saying she supports science teaching that “allows students to exercise critical thinking.”

This seemingly innocuous statement has raised alarms among science education advocates, and buoyed the hopes of conservative Christian groups that, if confirmed, DeVos may use her bully pulpit atop the U.S. Department of Education to undermine the teaching of evolution in public schools.

DeVos and her family have poured millions of dollars into groups that champion intelligent design, the doctrine that the complexity of biological life can best be explained by the existence of a creator rather than by Darwinian evolution. Within this movement, “critical thinking” has become a code phrase to justify teaching of intelligent design.

Intelligent design, in case you didn't already know it, is junk science.

Thanks, Pat.  This is who you voted for.