Maybe the senators were too busy dealing with health care and student loans to think of many zingers for U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan this morning, or maybe they really do like the direction of the Obama administration's blueprintfor reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
Either way, the tone of a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing at which Duncan testified on the administration's plan was surprisingly congenial, with key players (including Republicans) praising both Duncan and the draft.
Either way, the tone of a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing at which Duncan testified on the administration's plan was surprisingly congenial, with key players (including Republicans) praising both Duncan and the draft.
Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, the committee's chairman, who also oversees the panel that deals with education spending, said Duncan is the right guy for his job at the right time.
"I appreciate that you're willing to have this kind of vision for the future," he told Duncan. "I'm working with you and the administration to make sure we have the