Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday seemed to bolster President Donald Trump’s threat to cut funding for schools that don’t reopen in the fall.
Perfect. Absolutely perfect.
Is it still culturally appropriate to call it “blackmail”?
Because that’s EXACTLY what it is…
I feel like I’m missing something. Isn’t separation of powers relevant here? The Executive Branch cannot legally just withhold Congressionally appropriated funds for whatever reason strikes their fancy.
If Congress passes a budget with funds being allocated to states, and either the President signs off on the budget or it becomes law in spite of his veto, that’s the end of the story. He’s not legally allowed to just say “We’re going to sit on your money because we want to.”
(sigh)
“What you’re going to see is the President is going to continue to provide leadership,” the vice president told reporters. “I expect as the debate in Congress goes forward about additional resources, we’re going to look into building incentives for states to go forward.”
“Pence noted that “roughly percent” of states’ education funding comes from the federal government”
Um, did he really not put a number in there or did the author miss it?
Doing something similar got him impeached
This sounds like Pence trying to placate is mouth breathing overlord. Reading between the lines all he’s stating is that they’re going to try to negotiate financial incentives for schools to reopen in the next round of stimulus funding. I feel like they’re going to get outplayed on this one.
"we’re going to be working for ways to give states a strong incentive and an encouragement to get kids back to school,” the vice president said.
Kids can get “back to school” through online classes. That’s how our grandchildren finished the 1st and 4th grades, our son taught his Poli Sci classes, and our daughter taught a life drawing class last semester. It’s good to hear the education administration is going “to give states a strong incentive” to improve that system.
Schools, like everybody else in this country, just need to hold on until November 3. That’s when our long national hostage taking will be over.
So, let me see if I got this right: we’re going straight to bribery extortion now??
(@squirreltown said it better than I, so edited to reflect)
Wouldn’t Nancy P. Have something to say about this?
Stepping aside from the total madness of these statements; the one good thing is that continues the horrify swaths of people into voting him out. His uneducated cult won’t care but the rest of the country isn’t going to be OK with the threat of withholding $ from education. However improbable the threat is.
Only 4 months till November…Only 4 months till November…Only 4 months till November…
This isn’t bribery, it’s extortion.
Yo, Pence: It’s not your money to spend, asshole. It’s taxpayer money, allocated by our elected representatives in Congress.
Flunked Civics 1, didya?
Nice school. Shame if something were to happen to it.
Nope. Not until Biden takes office in January.
It will actually get infinitely worse by tRump at the interregnum between the November election and when the new President takes office because at that point anything goes. During that period the money will be quietly shuffled off into Cayman Islands, the shredders will be at warp speed and the pardons for all tRump’s henchmen will fly past us at a furious rate. So many other things will take place that I can’t even begin to imagine because my mind is no where near as warped as tRump’s but you can bet he’ll go to his evil place to bring on the pain.
And Senator Collins says he’s learned his lesson.
This is horrible and Yachtsy DeVos was no better. Saw the portion of this dog and pony show where she came out and lectured the media that now more than ever we need “choice” in schools. No crisis that these jackals can’t exploit to their own venal purposes.