By: Deborah Barfield Berry
Despite calls from some watchdog groups to recuse himself, Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy voted Tuesday to advance the nomination of Betsy DeVos, President Trump’s controversial pick for Secretary of Education.
“Absolutely I support her,’’ Cassidy, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (H.E.L.P.), said in a recent interview. “She believes in school choice (and) thinks that parents should have the power to choose where their child will go to school and if the school is failing, the child should not be stuck in that school. That’s music to my ears.”
After contentious debate, the committee voted 12-11 along party lines Tuesday to send DeVos’ nomination to the full Senate. A date has not yet been set for a vote in the Senate.
Republicans have defended DeVos, a key supporter of school choice and vouchers, saying she is committed to educating children. Two GOP members, however, signaled their votes in the committee Tuesday did not necessarily guarantee support on the Senate floor.
Democrats have complained that DeVos has not been thoroughly vetted and argued she lacks experience for the nation’s top education post.
Washington Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the committee, said DeVos’ nomination was being “jammed through.”
Government watchdog groups had called on Cassidy and some other members of the committee to recuse themselves because DeVos had contributed to their campaigns, including nearly $70,000 to Cassidy’s campaign.
“We’re concerned that Americans may not have as much faith in the process that includes so many senators who have taken so much money,” said David Donnelly, president and CEO of Every Voice. “Sen. Cassidy is one of them.”
Earlier this month, Every Voice and End Citizens United launched a campaign, including online ads, petitions and constituent calls, to urge Cassidy and other senators to recuse themselves.