[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 20 (Monday, February 6, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S694-S700]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                               Travel Ban

  Mr. President, while I have the floor, I will just take another 
minute or two to mention something else, as I have mentioned Vermont.
  On February 1 of this year, Vermont welcomed 31 new U.S. citizens 
from 14 countries through a naturalization ceremony in Rutland, VT. 
Later that night, more than 1,000 people from our

[[Page S695]]

small city in Vermont gathered on our statehouse lawn--just a few feet 
from where I was born and raised--in support of refugees and 
immigrants.
  We Vermonters understand what community means. It is a helping hand 
in a time of need. It is a kind word in a moment of distress. It is a 
welcoming embrace to calm a fear. We may be small, but in Vermont there 
is no limit to our compassion.
  As with each of our 50 great American States, immigration is a rich 
part of Vermont's past. For decades, we have opened our communities to 
immigrants and refugees. They have all become part of the fabric of our 
State. They have enriched us with their diverse cultures.
  Since the President signed his disgraceful Executive order that 
stymied our immigrant resettlement program and sent a shameful message 
to Muslims that they are not welcome in our country, I have heard from 
hundreds of Vermonters. Compassionate Vermont-
ers, pleading that we continue our Refugee Resettlement Program and 
welcome refugees of all religions, concerned Vermonters, anxious about 
the threats to our Constitution's protected freedoms and rights, 
nervous Vermonters wondering what next steps this administration will 
take in the name of security, but are just rooted in politically 
charged scare tactics.
  Vermonters have already proven that we will not back down. Marching 
in Montpelier and in Washington on January 21, Vermonters' voices were 
heard. In candlelit vigils across the State, their empathy has been 
seen. At the naturalization ceremony on February 1, Vermont's welcoming 
spirit could be felt.
  A man I admire greatly, Federal District Court Judge Geoffrey 
Crawford, gave stirring remarks at that naturalization ceremony, and 
the impact of those remarks are summarized by this one line, which he 
directed particularly to our new Muslim citizens: ``You are equal in 
the eyes of the law.'' Judge Crawford's message was simple: You are 
welcome. You are equal. You are protected.
  My fellow Vermonters inspire me every day. We should all take note 
from their example of what it means to be patriotic Americans.
  So I ask unanimous consent that Judge Crawford's remarks from the 
February 1, 2017, naturalization ceremony in Rutland, VT, be printed in 
the Record at the conclusion of my remarks.
  I look at Judge Crawford. Frankly, I have no idea what either he or 
the other Federal district judge's politics are. I just know they 
uphold the law. We are fortunate in this country to have a Federal 
court system made up of men and women of integrity, competence, and 
independence.
  I was shocked this weekend when the President of the United States 
tried to demean the Federal judiciary, tried to downgrade an individual 
Federal judge because he disagreed with him. And it was almost within 
hours that he praised President Putin and tried to excuse the 
assassinations--the assassinations--carried out in Russia against 
journalists or those who disagreed with Putin--by saying: Well, that is 
no different than our country.
  Well, Mr. President, I am proud to be a citizen of the United States 
of America, and we are different than Russia. You may have some 
``friendship'' with Vladimir Putin, but let me tell you right now, show 
some more respect to our country and to our Constitution.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

   Remarks of Judge Geoffrey Crawford at 2/1/17 U.S. Naturalization 
                         Ceremony, Rutland, VT

       Welcome--all of you--to your naturalization ceremony. You 
     will all leave here as American citizens. We are very happy 
     to include you among us. Let me take a moment to talk about a 
     few things.
       First, although our theme today is one of welcome and new 
     beginnings, we should all start by considering both the 
     difficulties of the journeys you have made and the richness 
     of the backgrounds which you bring. First the journey. The 
     Latin poet Catullus said it best:
       ``Multas per gentes et multa per aequora vectus''
       In English,
       ``Carried through many nations and over many seas''
       Your journeys have not been easy. Some of you have left 
     family--all of you have left friends and the comfort of 
     familiar surroundings for this new place. Some of you are 
     refugees from lands which are broken by war. Today we honor 
     the commitment of our nation to welcoming and caring for 
     refugees. Some of you experienced hunger, illness and 
     hardship. All of you come in search of a better life. But it 
     would not be right to forget the value of the lives and 
     communities from which you come.
       As we welcome you, we honor your heritage--your parents, 
     your culture, and the lands of your birth. You bring variety 
     and energy and new ideas to us. You know a lot that we do not 
     know. You have had experiences that we want to hear about. We 
     are lucky that you have chosen to make your lives here. We 
     need each of you because of what you will contribute to us--
     your work, your ideas, your sense of humor, your food, your 
     children.
       Let me speak directly about our new citizens who are 
     Muslims. What I have to say is simple: you are equal in the 
     eyes of the law. You are just as welcome here as citizens as 
     anyone else. Your faith and your right to worship are honored 
     and protected by our laws. We recognize that the Muslim faith 
     is ancient and learned and that it has contributed greatly 
     over more than a thousand years to our shared civilization. 
     Muslim citizens and residents have served America for more 
     than two centuries in military service, in scientific 
     research, in literature and the arts, in the professions, in 
     commerce, in labor--in all the ways that we all contribute to 
     the daily life of our nation. As Muslims, you have the same 
     right as any other citizen. These include protection from 
     discrimination on the basis of your relations and your 
     national origin and protection of your right to worship 
     freely. These protections are not empty promises. They form 
     part of our constitutional law. These protections are 
     enforced every day by our courts. But let me turn towards a 
     happier subject. This is a day of celebration. Today we 
     welcome you as our brothers and sisters, common citizens of 
     the county we all love and which you have chosen as your own.
       What can you expect in the years ahead as American 
     citizens? Two things stand out: opportunity and individual 
     freedom. These are the values which have brought people like 
     your family and mine to America for more than two centuries. 
     Let's talk about both.
       Opportunity means the chance to work, to go to school, to 
     find a way to support yourself which has meaning for you, to 
     have money for your family, to rent or buy a home, to educate 
     your children and some day to retire with dignity. Because 
     our economy is strong, there is room for you to find a place 
     which suits you. It is never easy, and there are many 
     disappointments along the way, but it is possible and 
     millions have succeeded before you.
       This is a very open society for workers. One job leads to 
     another. Your first job is not going to be your last. You are 
     already in a select group--people who have chosen to come 
     here and have the drive and enthusiasm to join us as 
     citizens. The same energy which carried you through the 
     naturalization process will help you in your search for a 
     good job.
       Now, let's talk about freedom. Freedom means the chance to 
     speak, assemble in groups, worship, and engage in politics 
     without fear of interference from the government.
       If I can make one respectful suggestion, it is that you use 
     this freedom by getting involved in a cause or a committee or 
     a campaign. Maybe something local--like asking for a sidewalk 
     where one is needed--maybe national--like volunteering on a 
     political campaign. In case you haven't noticed, we are in 
     the middle of a presidential race this year. There is a 
     candidate for every possible political belief. I urge you to 
     take part in any way that suits your own convictions and 
     interests. Freedom is strongest when it is used, not when it 
     sits dusty on the shelf, and we welcome your involvement in 
     public life together.
       People who are born in the United States sometimes take it 
     for granted. Like people anywhere. Or they concentrate on our 
     faults and the unfair things about our society. New Americans 
     such as you bring optimism. You would not have come if you 
     did not see the chance for a better life for your family. One 
     thing is certain--after the work to obtain citizenship, no 
     one here is going to take it for granted. I ask that in the 
     years ahead, you hold on to the hope and great expectation we 
     all share with you on this day.
       Thank you so much for coming to join us today as American 
     citizens.

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I yield the remainder of my time to Senator 
Schumer.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Young). The Senator from Massachusetts.
  Ms. WARREN. Mr. President, I rise today to call on my colleagues to 
reject the nomination of Betsy DeVos as the next Secretary of 
Education.
  It is difficult to imagine a worse choice to head the Department of 
Education. Betsy DeVos doesn't believe in public schools. Her only 
knowledge of student loans seems to come from her own financial 
investments connected to debt collectors who hound people struggling 
with student loans. Despite being a billionaire, she wants the chance 
to keep making money off

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shady investments while she runs the Department of Education. We need 
someone in charge of the Nation's education policy who knows what they 
are doing and who will put America's young people first, and that is 
not Betsy DeVos.
  Let's start with her record. Betsy DeVos has used her vast fortune to 
undermine Michigan's public schools. She is sure she knows what is best 
for everyone else's children, even though she has no actual experience 
with public schools.
  In Michigan, the K-12 policy she has bankrolled has drained valuable 
taxpayer dollars out of the public schools and shunted that money into 
private schools, sketchy online schools, and for-profit charter 
schools. Even worse, DeVos believes these schools should get the money 
with virtually no accountability for what these schools do with 
taxpayer dollars. The results have been a disaster for Michigan kids.
  Let's be perfectly clear. This is not a debate about school choice. 
It is not a debate about charter schools. There are people on all sides 
of this debate who are genuinely pouring their hearts into improving 
educational outcomes for children. Massachusetts charter schools are 
among the very best in the country, and they understand the difference.
  Before her nomination hearing, I received an extraordinary letter 
from the Massachusetts Charter Public School Association. The letter 
outlines their opposition to Betsy DeVos's nomination, citing her 
destructive record of promoting for-profit charter schools without 
strong oversight for how those schools serve students and families.
  People who work hard to build good charter schools with high 
accountability are offended by the DeVos nomination. This abysmal 
record is troubling because the Secretary of Education is responsible 
for safeguarding the investments that the Federal Government makes in 
public schools and for holding States accountable for delivering a good 
education for all their students, especially those who need the help 
the most.
  The Secretary is also responsible for enforcing critical civil rights 
laws, like the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and the 
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, but Betsy DeVos's 
confirmation hearing demonstrated to the entire world she is 
embarrassingly unprepared to enforce these laws.
  Her apparent unfamiliarity with these critical civil rights laws has 
terrified families who have children with special needs, terrified 
families in Massachusetts and all across the country. These parents are 
afraid we could have an Education Secretary who doesn't even have a 
basic understanding of the Federal laws that guarantee their kids a 
chance to receive a public school education.
  We still have a long way to go to make sure all kids in this country 
have a shot at a decent education, particularly children living in 
poverty, children of color, children with disabilities, and children 
who are immigrants or refugees. That is why the Federal Government got 
involved in education in the first place, to make certain that all of 
our children, not just some of them but that all of our children get a 
chance at a first-rate education.
  Public education dollars should come with some basic accountability 
for how that money is spent and some basic expectations about what we 
get in return for these investments, not just doled out to some for-
profit school that doesn't even meet basic standards in educating our 
children. This is also true in higher education, where the financial 
stakes are huge for America's college students.
  The Department of Education is in charge of making sure that the $150 
billion that American taxpayers invest in students each year through 
grants and loans gets into the right hands and that students get an 
education that will help them pay back their loans.
  The student aid program is not well understood, but it is vitally 
important to get it right because $1 trillion of student loan debt 
currently out there will impact the future of an entire generation.
  Betsy DeVos has no experience in higher education. During her 
confirmation hearing, I gave her the opportunity to show that she is at 
least serious about standing up for students. I asked her basic, 
straightforward questions about her commitment to protecting students 
and taxpayers from fraud by these shady for-profit colleges. Her 
response was shocking. She refused to commit to use the Department's 
many tools and resources to keep students from getting cheated when 
fraudulent colleges break the law.

  In her responses to my written questions, she even refused to commit 
to doing what the law requires by canceling the loans of students who 
have been cheated by lawbreaking colleges. An Education Secretary who 
is unwilling to cut off Federal aid to colleges that break the law and 
cheat students would be a disaster for both students and taxpayers. 
Betsy DeVos's refusal to guarantee debt relief for defrauded students 
could leave thousands of Americans saddled with student loan debt that 
by law they are not required to pay.
  Betsy DeVos also refused to rule out privatizing the Direct Loan 
Program. Think about this. As if our students don't have enough 
problems already, DeVos is ready to let Wall Street banks get their 
claws into our students and start charging extra profits on top of the 
already high cost of student loans.
  If Betsy DeVos won't commit to strengthening the Federal student loan 
program and running it for students, then she is absolutely unfit to be 
in charge of it.
  I am also deeply concerned about the conflicts of interest and 
potential government corruption if Betsy DeVos is allowed to take the 
reins of the Department of Education. Betsy DeVos is a 
multibillionaire, and that is fine, but for her, that is apparently not 
enough. She already makes money off of several businesses that could 
profit from decisions she makes as Secretary of Education--several 
businesses, at least, that we know about. She said she will get rid of 
the ones we know about, but she wants to keep her family trusts and 
whatever investments two of them hold a secret--a secret from Congress 
and a secret from U.S. taxpayers. She says she doesn't have to follow 
rules that everyone else follows and tell the Senate what her 
investments are or what they will be in those secret trusts. I want you 
to think about that for just a minute. She already has billions of 
dollars, but she won't give up her secret trust and her chance to make 
investments that could create conflicts of interest while she is 
running the Department of Education? Who exactly does Betsy DeVos want 
to help out--the young people of America or her own bank account?
  You know, I really don't get this. I disagree with her education 
policy, but the one thing we ought to be able to agree on is that no 
one, especially not some billionaire, ought to keep investments that go 
up or down in value depending on the decisions she makes while she has 
a job working for the U.S. Government. Because of that concern, I wrote 
a letter with several of my Democratic colleagues to raise concerns 
about her potential conflicts that aren't clearly resolved by her 
public ethics agreement. We asked her some simple questions about the 
lack of financial transparency and the shady investments she plans to 
keep while she has a government job. What did we get back? Nothing. 
Zero. Bupkes. She thought our basic questions about ethics weren't even 
worth an answer. That stinks. This whole process stinks.
  At every step along the way, the Republicans have made it clear that 
no matter her inexperience, no matter her radical views, no matter her 
potential conflicts of interest, no matter her secrecy, no matter her 
blowing off basic anti-corruption practices, they will ram this 
nomination down the throats of the American people sideways. Here are 
just a few egregious examples.
  First, committee Democrats were allotted 5 minutes--5 minutes total--
during her hearing to question Betsy DeVos on her troubling record. 
Republicans suddenly invented a new rule that we couldn't ask 
additional questions. This is an important job. I asked President 
Obama's Secretary of Education multiple rounds of questions, and he had 
led a public education system in the past, but I guess when a 
Republican nominee and megadonor is in line to run education policy, we 
are supposed to fall in line and keep quiet.
  Second, breaking with standard practice and what we did for President 
Obama's Education nominees, we were

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forced to hold Betsy DeVos's hearing before the ethics review of her 
billions was completed. The complicated ethics review raised a ton of 
additional questions, but we got absolutely no chance to question her 
about it.
  Third, Betsy DeVos is the first nominee ever to go through the HELP 
Committee who has flat-out refused to fully disclose her financial 
holdings. She will be the first nominee in recent history to hold 
secret trusts. She was supposed to complete a form that requires 
nominees to list in detail all of their assets, investments, and gifts 
so that the committee has a full understanding of the nominees' 
potential conflicts of interest. No, she wants to keep many of her 
holdings in a family trust a secret, so she just won't tell.
  Fourth, Republicans ignored and overrode the rules of the Senate in 
order to barely squeeze the DeVos nomination out of committee as 
quickly as possible. And now, with at least 50 Senators--Democrats, 
Republicans, and Independents--publicly opposed to this nomination, the 
Republican leadership has rigged the vote so that Senator Sessions can 
drag her across the finish line just before he is confirmed as Attorney 
General. Why is Senator Sessions even voting on this nomination? It is 
a massive conflict of interest. As the AG, Sessions will be responsible 
for enforcing the law against DeVos if her cesspool of unresolved 
financial conflicts results in illegal behavior, but apparently the 
Republicans just don't care.
  Let's face it: The Republican leadership wants DeVos, and they are 
willing to ignore her hostility to public schools, willing to ignore 
her indifference to laws that protect special needs kids, willing 
to ignore the giant ethical cloud that hangs over her--ignore it all so 
that billionaire and Republican campaign contributor Betsy DeVos can be 
Secretary of Education. The American people can see what is happening 
here.

  I commend my Republican colleagues, Senators Collins and Murkowski, 
for standing up for what is right and saying they will vote against 
Betsy DeVos's nomination on the floor. I know how difficult it can be 
to stand up for what is right even under overwhelming pressure from 
your own team to just keep your head down and go with the flow. They 
have been listening to the teachers and parents in their States, and I 
deeply respect their principled opposition to this nomination.
  I have also heard from thousands of teachers, parents, and education 
leaders in Massachusetts raising deep concern about Betsy DeVos's 
nomination. I hear their concern, and I share their concern.
  You know, this isn't just politics, this is deeply personal. It is 
personal for me. My first job out of college was as a teacher. I taught 
little ones, children with special needs, in a public elementary 
school. I have never lost my appreciation for the importance of strong 
public education because I have seen how public education opened a 
million doors for me, and I know it opens doors for young people in 
Massachusetts and all across this country. I believe that strengthening 
America's public schools is critical for securing a better future for 
our children and for our grandchildren. I also understand the vital 
role the Secretary of Education plays in making sure every young person 
has real opportunities and a fighting chance to succeed.
  We are one vote away from making sure this job is not entrusted to 
Betsy DeVos. One vote. We need just one more Republican to stand up for 
the children of America, to stand up for public education, to stand up 
for college students, to stand up for basic decency and honesty in 
government. With just one more Republican, we can say this Senate puts 
kids ahead of partisan politics. With just one more Republican, we can 
say this Senate still cares about public officials who put the public 
ahead of their own interests. Just one more Republican, that is all we 
need. Just one.
  I assumed that the rush to complete this nomination has something to 
do with the fact that Republicans' phones have been ringing off the 
hook from citizens who are outraged by the idea of this nomination. 
Before these Republicans decide whether to help Donald Trump reward a 
wealthy donor by putting someone in charge of the Department of 
Education who doesn't really believe in public education, I want them 
to hear from the people of Massachusetts, the people who on their own 
have contacted me about this nomination.
  I have received countless letters and calls from constituents in 
Massachusetts, including a batch of letters from a new local grassroots 
organization--Essex County #6 Indivisible--that is very concerned that 
Betsy DeVos is a danger to our schools. So I just want to share a few 
of those letters with my colleagues right now.
  I heard from Matt Harden, who is a teacher from Plymouth, and he 
wrote this:

       I have been a teacher for fifteen years and a parent for 
     seven. I feel incredibly proud of the schools in the 
     Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and view my position as a 
     music educator not simply as a job but a vocation. The recent 
     referendum in the Commonwealth regarding the expansion of cap 
     on Charter Schools was soundly defeated by the electorate. I 
     have grave concerns about Ms. DeVos and her ties to corporate 
     interests in education. Schools are not businesses, and 
     students are not products on an assembly line. This line of 
     thinking is a clear and present danger to our students, and 
     reflects a lack of familiarity with the public education 
     system.
       In this matter, my concerns are not limited to the borders 
     of our own state but the equitable access to education across 
     our nation. Ms. DeVos is not the right person to be an 
     intellectual and educational leader for our nation--we need 
     real change and ideas, not privatization and politicization 
     of our youngest and most vulnerable citizens.

  I also heard from Alexandra Loos, a special education teacher from 
Cambridge. She had this to say:

       I am a special education teacher who works with children 
     with developmental disabilities, and I urge you to vote 
     against the confirmation of Betsy DeVos as Secretary of 
     Education.
       I have grave concerns about the qualifications of Ms. DeVos 
     due to her lack of experience in the public education system 
     as well as her record of support for charter and private 
     schools that are not obligated to follow Federal education 
     standards or guidelines.
       Most urgently, as a professional who specializes in 
     evaluating and treating children with autism, Down syndrome, 
     learning disabilities, ADHD, and other developmental and 
     behavioral disorders, I am extremely concerned about Ms. 
     DeVos's apparent lack of understanding of the Individuals 
     with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the federal law that 
     guarantees ``a free and appropriate public education'' to 
     children with disabilities. During her confirmation hearing 
     this week, Ms. DeVos appeared to be unfamiliar with IDEA . . 
     . stating that she felt that enforcement of this federal law 
     should be left up to the states. This is unacceptable and 
     clearly indicates that Ms. DeVos is unqualified to serve as 
     Secretary of Education.
       With approximately 13% of public school children in special 
     education, it is essential that an Education Secretary be 
     knowledgeable and supportive of the federal laws that guide 
     special education services. Please vote ``no'' on Ms. DeVos's 
     confirmation.

  Yes, Alexandra. Yes.
  My office also heard from Diana Fullerton, a school adjustment 
counselor from Salem. Diana said she had never written to a politician 
before, but she felt strongly enough about Betsy DeVos to write:

       I am a school adjustment counselor in an elementary school 
     in Gloucester. I have never gotten involved much in politics 
     until this election. I went to the Boston Women's March on 
     Saturday and this is my first time writing to a politician. I 
     am extremely concerned about Trump's nomination for Secretary 
     of Education, Betsy DeVos. In my work I support students who 
     are very vulnerable: on IEPS, in high-poverty environments, 
     identifying as gay or transgender, and coming from 
     backgrounds where English is a second language. I believe 
     that Ms. DeVos' extreme and uneducated positions on the needs 
     of students in public schools could harm my children. Please 
     vote against her nomination as Secretary of Education.

  Thanks, Diana. I will.
  I heard from another teacher from Newton, who said:

       I am opposed to Betsey DeVos as the next Secretary of 
     Education. I have spent my entire life as a teacher--first in 
     public and private schools for 14 years teaching French, then 
     as a member of the faculty of Lesley University for 26 years, 
     and now as a teacher in a Life Long Learning program at 
     Brandeis. I cannot imagine having a Secretary of Education 
     who has never had any direct educational experience. I am 
     also very worried about her views of public education and her 
     appalling record on civil rights. Strong education is the 
     foundation of our democracy. Please do what you can to 
     maintain and improve our current system.

  Thank you.
  Yet another teacher contacted our office, this one from Abington. She 
wrote:

       I believe in my community's public schools. In fact, I've 
     worked in them as a

[[Page S698]]

     teacher for over 15 years. The nomination of Betsy DeVos has 
     me seriously considering a change of employment. Betsy DeVos 
     believes in school privatization and vouchers. She has worked 
     to undermine efforts to regulate Michigan charters, even when 
     they clearly fail, and yet she has never worked in a school. 
     The marketplace solution of DeVos will destroy our 
     democratically governed community schools. Her hostility 
     toward public schools disqualifies her. I am asking you to 
     vote against the confirmation of Betsy DeVos.

  We also heard from parents all across the State, including Leslie 
Boloian, a mother from Andover. Leslie said:

       I am a mother of an 8 year old who is dyslexic. She is 
     smart and very capable of learning what other kids can learn; 
     however, she needs specialized education. Through the public 
     school system, she is learning to read and continues to reach 
     new milestones daily. I fear that Betsy DeVos could put my 
     daughter's education at risk.
       I urge you to oppose Secretary of Education nominee Betsy 
     DeVos, who is best known for her anti-public education 
     campaigns!
       The chance for the success of a child should not depend on 
     winning a charter lottery, being accepted by a private 
     school, or living in the right ZIP code. It is our duty to 
     ensure all students have access to a great public school in 
     their community and the opportunity to succeed. Betsy DeVos 
     has consistently worked against these values, and her efforts 
     over the years have done more to undermine public education 
     than support all students.
       Betsy DeVos has no experience in public schools, either as 
     a student, educator, administrator, or even as a parent. She 
     has lobbied for failed schemes, like vouchers to fund private 
     schools at taxpayers' expense. These privatization schemes do 
     nothing to help our students most in need, and they ignore or 
     exacerbate glaring opportunity gaps.
       We need a Secretary of Education who will champion 
     innovative strategies that we know help to improve success 
     for all students, including creating more opportunities and 
     equity for all. Betsy DeVos is not that person, and I urge 
     you to vote against her for Secretary of Education.

  Thank you, Leslie.
  Kate Brigham, a mother from Somerville, also wrote. She said.

       My name is Kate Brigham, and I am a constituent of yours 
     from Somerville. . . . I'm writing to urge you to vote 
     against Betsy DeVos' confirmation as Secretary of Education. 
     The future of our kids here in Somerville and across the 
     country are depending on you to see the difference between 
     education progress and privatization.
       The majority of America's school children attend public 
     schools. We cannot leave their futures and the future of our 
     country in the hands of a woman whose ideas to privatize 
     school funding have already left the state of Michigan and 
     its children in shambles. Her personal financial conflicts of 
     interest are staggering.
       The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act--which 
     DeVos did not know was a federal law--guarantees rights to 
     both students with disabilities and to their parents. So this 
     isn't just about civil rights; it's also crucial to families. 
     We cannot afford a Secretary of Education who's ``confused'' 
     on what the law is. My own 2-year-old daughter benefits from 
     MA's wonderful Early Intervention program and will need 
     special education services when she turns 3 in September.
       IDEA and the ADA were both signed into law by Republican 
     Presidents. Disability rights are not and cannot become a 
     partisan issue. Thank you for ensuring that public education 
     for ALL will be protected. Somerville, and Massachusetts, 
     needs it. And we won't succeed with Betsy DeVos as Secretary 
     of Education.

  Thank you, Kate. Thanks for writing.
  Samantha Lambert, a mother of four from Everett, also contacted us 
with her concerns. Samantha wrote:

       I am a voter from MA who has struggled with the change 
     coming as a result of this election. . . . It is difficult to 
     focus when there is a new outrage at every turn.

       No one frightens me more than Betsy DeVos. Why? The impacts 
     of her ignorance and disdain for public education will remain 
     with us for a generation. I have 4 children, all educated in 
     the Everett Public School System, one of whom benefits from 
     Special Education.
       We have one opportunity to get it right with our children. 
     I was asked by a conservative friend who was curious why this 
     appointment brought such a backlash, and the answer was 
     simple for me. Our job is to protect our children, the 
     nation's children. Those unable to influence their future 
     with a vote. There is no mandate for the destruction of our 
     most treasured institution, the foundation of our democracy.
       My son deserves a free and fair education, as do his 
     siblings. As do their peers. The children in our school 
     district are in the lower socioeconomic rung. Many rely on 
     public transportation and neighborhood public schools. That 
     takes the choice out of school choice, doesn't it? It favors 
     students on economic lines, furthering the divide and putting 
     an undue burden on the schools left behind who will struggle 
     to serve the students that need this gift of education most.
       The public hearing demonstrated that Mrs. DeVos is wholly 
     unqualified for this appointment. Her answers or lack of 
     answers, specifically regarding IDEA and school choice, were 
     frightening. As a parent, I was literally shaking.
       My nine-year-old son was listening to a portion and heard 
     Senator Hassan mention dyslexia in her question. He cheered 
     and asked if we were going to make sure all kids get special 
     help to read. I couldn't answer him because in her answer, 
     Mrs. DeVos seemed not to know that IDEA is a Federal law 
     protecting these beautiful minds. Protecting them from being 
     a line item that can be wiped away, their future successes 
     and achievements going right along with it.
       I ask you, please oppose Betsy DeVos for Education 
     Secretary, for the good of ALL our nation's children.

  Thank you, Samantha. Thanks for writing.
  We also heard from Laura Fukushima, a mother and former teacher from 
Dedham. She wrote to say:

       Before having my own children, I taught in public schools 
     for five years--three in Boston and two in Tennessee (Sumner 
     Country)--and I'm writing to ask you to vote against 
     confirming Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education.
       It's evident that Ms. DeVos is passionate about education--
     judging from the enormous amounts of money she has poured 
     into shaping policy--and I have no reason to doubt her 
     intentions are good. But that doesn't qualify her for this 
     job. Here are my concerns:
       1) Aside from having no experience in public schools, 
     either as a parent or a student, she has no experience in any 
     kind of school as an educator.
       2) At her confirmation hearing, she demonstrated a lack of 
     basic understanding of many pertinent issues and concepts--an 
     intimate knowledge of which is required to shape good 
     educational policy.
       3) Despite lacking both the prerequisite knowledge and 
     experience within the field of education, she actively used 
     her wealth to sway legislators in Michigan away from their 
     initial support of bipartisan measures, based on a broad 
     coalition of informed participants, to regulate and improve 
     charter schools. (For the record, I do support charter 
     schools, but understanding that there is a vast disparity in 
     their quality, I see the need for rigorous oversight.) Her 
     efforts, I believe, have been more detrimental than 
     beneficial to the children of Detroit.
       4) Her suggestion that enforcing IDEA should be left to the 
     states is very troubling. Such policy would leave our most 
     vulnerable students very far behind.
       While I agree with Ms. DeVos that our educational system 
     would benefit from some additional choice for parents, I 
     think she's wildly mistaken if she believes a completely free 
     market will fix our schools. We need a Secretary of Education 
     who believes in proper oversight and can help create 
     effective measures of assessment and accountability to 
     improve education for all our children. That's what the 
     Department of Education is for. To run it successfully, we 
     need a Secretary, unlike DeVos, who is well trained in the 
     field.

  Thank you, Laura.
  A mother from Clinton also wrote about how she would be personally 
affected by Betsy DeVos, saying:

       I have an 8-year-old daughter with Autism Spectrum Disorder 
     who receives services through our public elementary school. I 
     believe that every individual deserves an equal education. 
     IDEA must be upheld! My daughter is doing very well with her 
     studies because of the supports she receives. She is a very 
     smart girl but needs and deserves accommodations. I am 
     thankful there are laws to protect her.
       Betsy DeVos thinks that states should decide how to fund 
     education for individuals with disabilities. I believe it 
     should remain federally mandated. I wouldn't be able to 
     afford a private education for my daughter in a special 
     school. I know there are many more parents like me.
       I also opposed expanding Charter schools in our state. I 
     believe publicly funded schools should be publicly run and 
     overseen.
       I request you reject Betsy DeVos for Education Secretary.

  Thank you.
  Another parent wrote to say:

       I am writing to express my strong opposition to the 
     confirmation of Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education. She 
     has demonstrated NO commitment to public education throughout 
     her life, and her support of charter schools in Detroit has 
     been a demonstrated failure. The framing of for-profit 
     charter schools as providing ``choice'' for parents is a 
     false framing--it provides the illusion of a poorly regulated 
     and poorly supervised choice for some parents while limiting 
     the resources and choices left to the other parents and 
     leading to a downward spiral in the quality of public 
     education. Transferring public funding of education to for-
     profit charter schools, creaming off the children of the most 
     motivated parents, and leaving the more difficult, lower 
     income, and children with special education challenges is a 
     prescription for failure of public schools and will result in 
     herding lower-income students into dysfunctional schools, 
     setting them up for a lifetime of underemployment.
       I am not a teacher, nor a member of a teacher's union. I am 
     a mother, and I was

[[Page S699]]

     proud to send my son to the Brookline Public Schools for his 
     entire K-12 education. I want other children to have a chance 
     for a quality education, not to be the fodder for a private, 
     for-profit charter school with no commitment to the public 
     good.
       Quality public education is the foundation of a free 
     society and the key to sustaining a vibrant economy in the 
     future. Please oppose the confirmation of Betsy DeVos.

  A woman from Canton also wrote in. She said:

       As a parent of public school children, I urge you to reject 
     the nomination of Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education. A 
     free and appropriate education is the cornerstone of our 
     democracy, but Ms. DeVos has shown no interest in preserving 
     public education. In fact, she has worked tirelessly to 
     divert public funds into private pockets by way of 
     deregulating and expanding charter schools and to offer 
     vouchers which can be used at private and religious schools. 
     This is a clear violation of our principle of separating 
     church and State.
       Ms. DeVos's strategies have had disastrous consequences in 
     Michigan. Eighty percent of charter schools there operate for 
     profit. When schools look first to satisfy investors, they 
     rely on teaching to standardized tests, not on educating 
     children. Here in Massachusetts, we overwhelmingly rejected 
     the idea, one funded by billionaires, and resisted by parents 
     and public school teachers.
       Please join us in opposing a ``lead educator'' who has 
     never gone to a public school nor sent her children to one. 
     Please consider that the nation's future depends on educating 
     every child, and that to do so, we need to restore and 
     strengthen our public school system, not dismantle it in 
     favor of profiting off the backs of our youth.

  Thank you.
  It is no surprise that we also heard from many constituents 
struggling with student loans. One of those was Liam Weir, a college 
student from Brighton, who had this to say:

       As a college student and a resident of the State of 
     Massachusetts, I am writing you to express my deep concern 
     over the potential appointment of Betsy DeVos to the position 
     of Secretary of Education. Ms. DeVos is extraordinarily 
     unqualified to lead such a department. The fact that the 
     President has chosen such a person, with no experience in 
     education administration in any capacity at any level, is an 
     insult to the millions of teachers, students, and school 
     administrators across the country. Ms. DeVos's policies will 
     undermine already struggling public school systems by 
     allocating taxpayer funds to advance a cynical and deeply 
     troubling agenda against established science. I myself am a 
     recipient of Federal college grants and loans, and I am 
     growing increasingly concerned about Ms. DeVos's competency 
     in managing the looming student debt crisis.
       Now more than ever is a time for the Education Department 
     to be run by capable and caring individuals, not willfully 
     ignorant ones.

  A young mother from Winthrop also reached out to us. She had this to 
say:

       I urge you to vote No on the confirmation of Betsy DeVos, a 
     singularly unqualified individual . . . among a veritable sea 
     of unqualified individuals this administration has chosen to 
     lead our country.
       My husband and I have no personal stake in public education 
     over the next 4 years. Our daughter is only 7 months old. But 
     I am the child of two public schoolteachers in RI, my friends 
     are teachers, my friends' children are in school, my nephews, 
     cousins, etc. I believe in public schools and I believe that 
     Betsy DeVos is not the right direction for our public 
     education system. She is dangerous, and her lack of knowledge 
     is appalling.
       Also, and I thank you so much for asking about this at her 
     hearing--student loans are not a business, they are a crisis 
     in this country. My husband has a six figure debt, with 
     interest rates at 7.5 percent. He had to take a job . . . 
     rather than pursue his dreams of working in criminal justice 
     because he needed a job that could pay his $1,000 a month 
     student loan bill. Our saving grace is that I have a good 
     job, and my student loan debt is nearly paid off--because I 
     was loaned a reasonable amount at a reasonable 2 percent 
     interest rate. We are a case study in how the program should 
     work vs. predatory lending.

  That is so true. Thanks for writing.
  Liz Bosworth, a mother of two from North Dartmouth, had this to say:

       While I am fully aware that you do not support the 
     nominations for many of President Trump's nominees, I am 
     currently most concerned about Ms. DeVos. I watched parts of 
     her hearing and I remain concerned that there was a denial 
     for a second hearing. I hope this leads to continued 
     questions and a final opposition of her as Secretary of 
     Education. Your lines of questioning served to highlight her 
     lack of qualifying experience but still, in light of this 
     last six month's politics, I believe anything is possible.
       As the mother of two small children and a daughter-in-law, 
     niece, cousin, friend, and wife of public school teachers, I 
     find her to be quite alarming and somewhat scary as the 
     potential leader of that office. We are strong proponents of 
     public education and of teaching our children to value their 
     time in school and to achieve high levels of success.
       With that comes some anxiety around their aspirations to 
     higher learning. As a master's level social worker, I will be 
     paying off my loans until I start to pay for my son's higher 
     education. I do not want the debt for my children that I 
     have. At this rate, I am saving far much less money per month 
     for their college funds while paying off my own. I want my 
     children to go higher than myself, but I want them to do so 
     with a level of confidence in their finances that I was not 
     afforded. Ms. DeVos, highlighted by you in her confirmation 
     hearing, has not been involved with student loans on any 
     level and does not have the experience to become entrusted 
     with my current debt or the debt of my children.
       Finally, I would like to highlight my abject fear of the 
     treatment of those students with learning disabilities, 
     particularly severe and profound disorders, if she is 
     confirmed. While I see many walks of life in my field, my 
     mother was a proud special education teacher in New Bedford 
     for 33 years. She was proud to be able to teach life skills 
     like budgeting, simple cooking and social skills to her 
     students who may not ever be college ready. We worry about 
     those kids and what will become of them if Ms. DeVos is 
     confirmed. My husband is currently employed in a 
     collaborative that works with mentally ill children who need 
     a different kind of educational process but can still achieve 
     the same goals. I am not sure they would ever qualify for a 
     voucher to attend some Charter school.
       We are committed to families and community maintenance of 
     all students with the right care at the right time. I am not 
     sure that Ms. DeVos is committed in the same way.
       Please vote to oppose Ms. DeVos.

  Thank you, Liz. Thanks for writing.
  I heard from another student in Boston who told me the following:

       I am writing to you today as a public school teacher and a 
     Ph.D. Candidate in Urban Education, Leadership and Policy 
     Studies. I believe in public schools. Betsy DeVos believes in 
     school privatization and vouchers. She has worked to 
     undermine efforts to regulate Michigan charters, even when 
     they clearly failed. The ``marketplace'' solution of DeVos 
     will destroy our democratically governed community schools. 
     She has no professional experience in the education field. 
     She does not truly understand the nuances of public education 
     nor does she want to understand.
       I managed to earn scholarships that took care of most of my 
     schooling, but I still have about $80,000 in student loans. 
     (Not bad for 2 expensive private institution degrees!) I am a 
     first generation college student and my single mother could 
     not afford to help me pay for my schooling. Betsy DeVos just 
     doesn't have experience in K-12 public schools, but she has 
     no experience in running the student loan department. The 
     Federal student loan program is far from perfect. We need 
     someone running it who is knowledgeable in the process, 
     believes in making college more affordable, and understands 
     what it feels like to not be sure how you will pay for 
     college. She has no qualifications of any kind in this area.
       I am asking you to vote against the confirmation of Betsy 
     DeVos. Please consider this request and the thousands of 
     other people across the country who vehemently disagree with 
     Ms. DeVos's candidacy.

  Thank you.
  Sarah Rothery, a mother of two from Northborough, told me about her 
two sons, saying:

       I am writing to ask that you oppose the confirmation of Ms. 
     DeVos for the cabinet position for which she was nominated 
     under President Trump. I have put 2 sons through college 
     thanks to Stafford loans and personal savings and I think she 
     has no idea what is involved in middle class families 
     financing college educations today. One of my sons is now an 
     8th grade history teacher in a public charter school, Abbot 
     Kelly Foster, in Worcester, and worries that Ms. DeVos has no 
     real understanding of urban education as well.

  Thank you, Sarah. Thanks for writing.
  I have also heard from Alicia Bettano, a former student from Merrimac 
who bravely shared with me her own experiences. This is from Alicia:

       I suffer from a Non Verbal Learning Disorder. Up until I 
     was 13 years old I was not diagnosed with anything. I went to 
     aides, speech therapists, everyone. I had trouble in the 
     maths and in sciences. I was thought of as stupid. I was 
     yelled at by aides. When I was 13 and diagnosed, my teachers 
     didn't understand. They thought sitting me closer to the 
     white board would allow me to understand better, despite the 
     fact that it was their teaching methods that confused me. I 
     was told I would not go to college or graduate. My parents 
     had to hire an advocate to work for me to get my teachers and 
     school to understand my disability. It took me some time to 
     figure out what I wanted and needed, but in May I graduated 
     college.
       Betsy DeVos would be a horror for those with disabilities; 
     not just learning ones, but mental ones. I was lucky I had 
     parents and one teacher backing me. What about the ones that 
     don't? Putting Betsy DeVos into office will hurt our children 
     in America--that's not making America great.

  Alicia, thank you for writing. I really appreciate it. 
Congratulations on your graduation.

[[Page S700]]

  A man from Brookline also wrote in, saying this:

       As someone passionate about education, especially the 
     education of students in Massachusetts, and as a graduate of 
     a public elementary school, middle school, high school and 
     college; as a young professional burdened by education debt; 
     as the husband of an early childhood educator working in a 
     struggling Boston neighborhood; as a member of a family 
     filled with men and women dedicated to careers in public 
     education, I strongly urge you to oppose Secretary of 
     Education nominee Betsy DeVos. My vote for or against 
     candidates in future elections will be informed by whether 
     the candidate publicly opposed this Secretary of Education 
     nominee.
       Betsy DeVos has consistently worked against public 
     education and she is incredibly unqualified for this 
     position. At best, she should be an undersecretary focused on 
     public-private partnerships. If you must work with the 
     incoming administration, suggest her nomination for that 
     role, but you must oppose her cabinet-level appointment.
       DeVos has no experience in public schools, either as a 
     student, educator, administrator or even as a parent. She has 
     lobbied for, and been employed by, initiatives that have 
     undermined public education in America.
       We need a Secretary of Education who will champion 
     innovative strategies that we know help to improve success 
     for all students, including creating more opportunities and 
     equity for all. I urge you to vote against Ms. DeVos for 
     Secretary of Education.

  What does Betsy DeVos have to say to Matt and Diana or to the 
thousands of other teachers who have more experience in public 
education than she does? What does she have to say to Leslie and 
Samantha, whose children have benefited from the programs she wants to 
cut? What does she have to say to Sarah, who relied on Stafford loans 
to put her sons through college?
  It is not just individuals who are worried about Betsy DeVos. We have 
heard from groups across the State as well. The Massachusetts Charter 
Public School Association wrote me, saying this:

       Dear Senator Warren,
       As the Association representing the 70 Massachusetts 
     commonwealth charter public schools, we are writing to 
     express our concerns over the nomination of Elisabeth DeVos 
     as U.S. Secretary of Education. We do not express these 
     reservations lightly, but we believe it is important to raise 
     certain issues that should be addressed by the nominee.
       Both President-elect Trump and Ms. DeVos are strong 
     supporters of public charter schools, and we are hopeful they 
     will continue the bipartisan efforts of the Clinton, Bush and 
     Obama Administrations to promote the continued expansion of 
     high quality charters while pursuing reforms that will 
     strengthen traditional public schools.
       But we are concerned about media reports of Ms. DeVos' 
     support for school vouchers and her critical role in creating 
     a charter system in her home state of Michigan that has been 
     widely criticized for lax oversight and poor academic 
     performance, and appears to be dominated by for-profit 
     interests.
       As the senior Senator from Massachusetts and a member of 
     the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & 
     Pensions (HELP), which will hold hearings on the nomination, 
     you will be in a position to ensure the nominee commits to 
     holding the national charter school movement to the highest 
     levels of accountability and oversight that are the hallmark 
     of the Massachusetts charter system.
       By all independent accounts, Massachusetts has the best 
     charter school system in the country. We are providing high 
     quality public school choices for parents across our state. 
     Our urban schools are serving the highest need children in 
     Massachusetts, and are producing results that have 
     researchers double-checking their math. These gains held 
     across all demographic groups, including African American, 
     Latino, and children living in poverty.
       The cornerstone of the Massachusetts charter public school 
     system is accountability. The process of obtaining and 
     keeping a charter is deliberately difficult. The state Board 
     of Elementary and Secondary Education is the sole authorizer 
     and historically has approved only one out of every five 
     applications. Once approved, each charter school must submit 
     to annual financial audits by independent auditors and annual 
     performance reviews by the state Department of Elementary and 
     Secondary Education. Every five years, each charter must be 
     renewed after a process as rigorous as the initial 
     application process. For-profit charter schools are 
     prohibited by Massachusetts law.
       Our schools have also created partnerships with many 
     Massachusetts public school districts to foster collaboration 
     and best practices sharing, and have forged an historic 
     Compact between Boston charter public schools and the Boston 
     Public Schools that has become a national model.
       Bipartisan support has been key to the development and 
     success of the Massachusetts system. Created in 1993 by a 
     Democratic Legislature and a Republican Governor, public 
     charter schools have continued to receive support from all 
     Governors, Republican and Democratic alike, and Democratic 
     legislative leaders.
       If the new President and his nominee intend to advance the 
     cause of school choice across the country, they should look 
     to Massachusetts for their path forward.
       The history of charter schools in Michigan offers a more 
     cautionary tale. The same researchers from Stanford that 
     declared Massachusetts charter public schools an unqualified 
     success, had mixed reviews for Michigan's charters.
       According to media reports, last year Ms. DeVos actively 
     campaigned against bipartisan legislation that would have 
     provided more oversight for Michigan's charters. If these 
     reports are true, we are deeply concerned that efforts to 
     grow school choice without a rigorous accountability system 
     will reduce the quality of charter schools across the 
     country. We hope you agree that quality, not quantity, should 
     be the guiding principle of charter expansion. Without high 
     levels of accountability, this model fails.
       We ask that you use the hearing to probe the incoming 
     Administration's intentions regarding education policy in 
     general and school choice and quality specifically.
       We'd be happy to provide you with more information on the 
     Massachusetts model and would welcome a meeting with your 
     staff to brief them on our concerns.
       Sincerely,
       Massachusetts Charter Public School Association Board of 
     Directors.

  The people of Massachusetts cannot afford Betsy DeVos. This is why I 
will vote no on her nomination and why I urge my colleagues to do the 
same.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.