Matt Damon: Get Educators, Not Business People, To Run Schools

Matt Damon expands upon the Obama criticism he offered the other night on CNN in this interview in The Independent:

Laying bare his disenchantment with the Obama administration, he doesn't hide how let down he feels. President Obama's record on the economy particularly rankles. "I think he's rolled over to Wall Street completely. The economy has huge problems. We still have all these banks that are too big to fail. They're bigger and making more money than ever. Unemployment at 10 per cent? It's terrible."

What has proved to be a challenging time in office for President Obama culminated in significant Democratic reversals to the Republicans at last November's mid-term elections. Many of his star backers have either kept quiet about politics or, as in the case of George Clooney, Damon's close friend and co-star in the Ocean's trilogy, remained steadfastly loyal. Not Damon. He is upset that Mr Obama, who promised to "spread the wealth around", has extended the Bush tax cuts and that the inequality gap has widened.

"They had a chance that they don't have any more to stand up for things," he says. "They've probably squandered that at this point. They'll probably just make whatever deals they can to try to get elected again."

Damon appears so disillusioned that, playing devil's advocate, I ask whether he is considering voting Republican. "Good God, no! I just got a 3 per cent tax cut. Do you think I'm going to start a small business with that money? You're out of your mind if you think so. I'm going to put it in the bank. So is every other guy that makes the kind of money I make. I don't think that's what's best for the country. I think a stronger middle class makes for a stronger country."

As well as the economy, Mr Obama's record on education repels him. "They have to get people who actually know about educating kids in positions of power. Now they're trying to get business people to come and manage schools like they're factories. It's not going to work."

Three points Damon hits that I want to echo - the country needs a strong middle class to be a strong nation. Right now, we have really, really rich people and everybody else.

Next, I agree that Obama stands for nothing and will do whatever is expedient to get re-elected. That was what the Bush tax cuts extension was all about.

Finally, closest to my heart is Damon's point about getting business people to manage schools not working. Of course that was NOT something that Obama ran on specifically back in 2008. Hey, I'm going to put a corporate whore in charge of the DOE who's going to promote privatization and union-busting policies that will have states firing teachers and closing schools all over the place.

But that's exactly what he has done.

It's good to see Damon repeating the criticism from last week this week again.

I bet the Obama people aren't so happy an actor/activist as prominent as Damon is off the reservation and HAMMERING Obama as a corporate sell-out who is damaging the economy and the school system with his policies.