--BombThrowers
Doing their best Orval Faubus impersonation, what appeared to be Black Lives Matter protesters blocked newly sworn-in U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos from entering Jefferson Academy, a public school in Washington, D.C.
DeVos was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Tuesday after running into stiff opposition during her confirmation hearings. The vote on confirmation was initially 50 to 50 but Vice President Mike Pence stepped into to cast a historic tie-breaking vote as president of the Senate.
While the news article from WJLA/ABC7’s Sam Sweeney doesn’t make clear what group blocked DeVos, the man chasing her in the video is holding a “Black Lives Matter” placard.
One protester was arrested for assaulting a police officer, according to the news story.
DeVos eventually returned to the school and entered to speak with teachers and the school principal.
The Washington Teachers’ Union was also present, although its members did not participate in the blockade. WTU claims it was just there to greet DeVos and relay a strong message.
It appears that DeVos was accosted while trying to gain access to the school via a rear entrance. One wonders how the protesters knew exactly which entrance she would use.
Finally, what will the media reaction be to this? It isn’t hard to imagine what it would have been if Obama’s Secretary of Education John King had ever received similar treatment.
David Hogberg is a writer living in Maryland. He is author of the book, “Medicare’s Victims: How the U.S. Government’s Largest Health Care Program Harms Patients and Impairs Physicians.”
