What’s really behind the mayoral takeover of MPS?
Money and power.
And, weirdly, New York hedge funds.
As I detail in this week’s Shepherd, Joe Williams, a former Milwaukee Journal Sentinel education reporter, has become a major advocate of some education reforms that traditionally have been favored by conservatives: voucher and charter schools and mayor-led school districts. If you read the MJS, which likes to quote Williams' cheerleading of Arne Duncan’s Race to the Top funds, he’s merely identified as the executive director of Democrats for Education Reform.
But since leaving Milwaukee and newspaper reporting, Williams has become the darling of hedge fund managers, and his various nonprofit and political entities are flush with funds from these “hedge fund heavies,” as the New York Times put it.
Beats cranking out newspaper articles, hey?
Anyway, Williams’ groups have been pushing for mayoral control under the guise of the bland-sounding groups Democrats for Education Reform (a federal PAC) and Education Reform Now.
They’ve hired Oconomowoc lobbyist Katy Venskus to make their case in Madison. (You may notice that she's also lobbied for Susan Mitchell's group, School Choice Wisconsin.)
Basically, on the takeover, Katy's speaking to the converted, like her former boss, pro-voucher Sen. Jeff Plale.
|
|
I had a long conversation with Katy last week. She was articulate but at the same time said nothing. Lots of PR blather about “stakeholders” and stuff like that.
I’ll post outtakes when I can they’re worth a giggle or two.
But here’s some juicy stuff:
Katy’s been calling herself the Wisconsin state director of both Democrats for Education Reform and Education Reform Now.
But she’s a lobbyist for Education Reform Now. And she’s been lobbying for the Taylor-Colon takeover bill. But big oopsie! She forgot to register with the state GAB for her lobbying activities on that bill. I pointed that out to her last Friday, Jan. 8. Not surprisingly, she did indeed register on that same date probably the minute we got off the phone.
She waved away my concerns by saying she did “less than a handful of hours” of direct lobbying on the bill. She spent most of her time “organizing” and “having conversations with anyone who is willing to have one.”
And if you believe that, I know some hedge fund managers who’d love to sell you a couple of junk bonds and craptacular derivatives.
So here’s the kicker: Someone who’s trying to pose as a grassroots activist and community stakeholder is really a paid lobbyist. Katy testified at last week’s public hearing. She signed a letter to legislators last December, along with a host of voucher and charter advocates.
Shouldn’t the GAB look into her activities?
