Video: Why California really, really needs Race to the Top funds
posted at 2:15 pm on July 25, 2009 by Ed Morrissey
Item: California may not get to participate in President Obama’s Race to the Top education grant system because the state bars school districts from using student testing data in teacher evaluations:
The state isn’t likely to see any of the $4.35 billion in competitive federal grants that will be passed out as part of the American Recovery Act if legislators don’t rescind a law that prevents teachers from being evaluated based on student test scores, say federal officials.
“Any state that makes it unlawful to link student progress to teacher evaluation will have to change its ways if it wants to compete for a grant,” President Barack Obama said in a news conference Friday.
California’s education code states that a system tracking teacher data, to be online next year, is not to be used in combination with student information to evaluate teachers.
Only Wisconsin and Nevada have similar laws.
Item: Even apart from the money, evidence that California needs to repeal those laws:
King Banaian dropped this one on us in the NARN Green Room this afternoon, in what had to be a covert operation to undermine our show prep. I’m not sure which is my favorite part — probably where the young woman explained that “food is free, all you have to do is pay the farmers” — but Mitch thinks the “vegetable trees” was the best. Actually, I think the most edifying part was watching the Santa Cruz city council sit impassively to the very end, or maybe the strangled applause just before they asked for the next speaker.
California, the choice could not be more clear.
Blowback
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I want some vegetable trees too, and organic food grown from good pesticides.
OmahaConservative on July 25, 2009 at 2:37 PM
My favorite parts… east coast still using slavery and fruits and vegetables last forever in the freezer.
myrenovations on July 25, 2009 at 2:37 PM
I doubt this is legit. It’s either a put-on or she was high.
Purple Fury on July 25, 2009 at 2:37 PM
That bra is getting a workout
Dingbat63 on July 25, 2009 at 2:37 PM
I’d hit it.
MadisonConservative on July 25, 2009 at 2:38 PM
Wonder if her rack was part of the stuff produced in CA?
OmahaConservative on July 25, 2009 at 2:38 PM
..brain..hurts..must die quickly.. Oh please dear God in heaven..If you love me, Pass Obamacare soon..
GoodBoy on July 25, 2009 at 2:38 PM
And, really, that’s all that matters.
I’d hit it too.
lorien1973 on July 25, 2009 at 2:38 PM
Honestly, watching this once really messed my head up for a while.
exception on July 25, 2009 at 2:38 PM
Is milk free too ? Huh Elsie ?
redrock on July 25, 2009 at 2:38 PM
I’ve seen a few fruit trees in my time, but I don’t recall ever having seen any veggie trees. I need to get out more. There is so much I don’t know.
jimmy2shoes on July 25, 2009 at 2:39 PM
Oh my Lord. And was she her school’s valedictorian?
Fuzzlenutter on July 25, 2009 at 2:39 PM
She has smoked way too much mari-hoochy.
PattyJ on July 25, 2009 at 2:39 PM
I saw this yesterday.
Or I should say I saw the first 30 seconds or so and then could not put up with anymore of it.
This will be Barry’s new food czar.
Jim708 on July 25, 2009 at 2:40 PM
Is this real?
Spirit of 1776 on July 25, 2009 at 2:40 PM
( * )( * )
redrock on July 25, 2009 at 2:41 PM
It was edited down, how long was her whole, um, presentation?
exception on July 25, 2009 at 2:41 PM
I’ve sat through a couple of Santa Cruz City Council session. It’s business as usual with all the whackjobs in that city.
Joking aside, before the 1989 earthquake, Santa Cruz was one of the nicest cities. Very quaint 1920s California look and feel to it. It was sad to see it all destroyed.
Blake on July 25, 2009 at 2:43 PM
Nah, My Belle Michelle would veto that in a NY minute after he was caught ogling that sixteen year old tush in Europeistan.
OmahaConservative on July 25, 2009 at 2:43 PM
She also probably believes that universal health care is free, as long as we pay alot for it.
ThePrez on July 25, 2009 at 2:45 PM
HAHAHAHAHA
d-mitch on July 25, 2009 at 2:45 PM
Just shoot me now.
EZnSF on July 25, 2009 at 2:46 PM
Your history on this blog suggests you would hit almost anything. Maybe even Pelosi—nah.
CWforFreedom on July 25, 2009 at 2:47 PM
Meet the future Junior Senator from California!
Joe Pyne on July 25, 2009 at 2:48 PM
I want to believe that this is a joke but something about her makes me believe she really is an idiot.
Man, wait until all those salves on the East Coast realize slavery ended 134 years ago. They are gonna be pissed!
Agent of the Cross on July 25, 2009 at 2:49 PM
Can you imagine being one of her teachers or professors and having to read 10 pages of this?
myrenovations on July 25, 2009 at 2:50 PM
Did she say there is slavery on the east coast?
forest on July 25, 2009 at 2:51 PM
That’s it! Straight to the liquor store.
RMR on July 25, 2009 at 2:51 PM
She’s pretty comfortable and confident about what she is saying too.
exception on July 25, 2009 at 2:52 PM
I got as far as “they should lower their rent” before I couldn’t take it anymore.
Watching that should be classified as a “harsh interrogation method”.
Count to 10 on July 25, 2009 at 2:52 PM
KALIFORNIA in a nutshell. Is that 9.5 Quake here yet?
angryed on July 25, 2009 at 2:52 PM
Slavery and made in China.
exception on July 25, 2009 at 2:52 PM
I just lost several IQ points.
Frozen Tex on July 25, 2009 at 2:52 PM
Did somebody try to get the slow clap going at the end of that?
Johnson on July 25, 2009 at 2:53 PM
Did she have a Gates teachable moment?
Mr. Joe on July 25, 2009 at 2:53 PM
Wow. How does that girl not kill herself after something as stupid as that??
JaqobJackson on July 25, 2009 at 2:54 PM
Why Democrats will never completely go away.
Mr. Joe on July 25, 2009 at 2:54 PM
What this woman really needs is a good bra with some decent support. And to stop slouching. Go to Victoria’s Secret, get a decent bra, and pull those shoulders back! Be proud when you’re spouting total nonsense!
McKenz59 on July 25, 2009 at 2:54 PM
My brain was about to explode after listening to her. “Like, the land is, like, free, so the crops should be, like, free, ya know, like we can sell them and like. . . ”
Wow. That’s all I can say. Wow.
DuctTapeMyBrain on July 25, 2009 at 2:55 PM
Has Obama seen this yet?
He might want to reconsider his choice for Science Czar.
fogw on July 25, 2009 at 2:55 PM
Watched it on mute. Anybody else getting the impression that the two kids in the background aren’t buying a word she is saying?
Count to 10 on July 25, 2009 at 2:56 PM
And to think that more than half of the entire budget for the State of California is thrown down the Education Rat Hole run by the Teacher’s Union…………..
Seven Percent Solution on July 25, 2009 at 2:56 PM
I’m starting to think that if she has two boobies and a heartbeat, and it’s “hitable” for you doods…heh…
JetBoy on July 25, 2009 at 2:56 PM
I had to watch again just for educational purposes. With the sound off of course.
fourdeucer on July 25, 2009 at 2:56 PM
Right there at 1:19.
I finally did watch almost the entire thing just to see that part.
Jim708 on July 25, 2009 at 2:57 PM
I think the little blonde girl in the background was making the crazy sign up by her head…then proceeded to fall asleep about 3 times. Can’t say I blame her.
proudteadrinker on July 25, 2009 at 2:58 PM
I don’t ever want to read about West Virginians being stupid again after watching that.
The blue states are the dumb ones.
wildcat84 on July 25, 2009 at 2:58 PM
The guy behind her in the upper right hand corner is looking at her with the “WTF” look.
FontanaConservative on July 25, 2009 at 2:58 PM
The sad thing is she knew Bush was President in 2008. That makes her smarter than most democrats who still think Bush is president and to blame for problems today.
William Amos on July 25, 2009 at 2:59 PM
Shame on you!
Allahpundit needs it more.
Loxodonta on July 25, 2009 at 2:59 PM
Probably saw them arresting one of them in Cambridge.
fogw on July 25, 2009 at 2:59 PM
My six and four year olds could intellectually bury this poor, poor woman.
Niere on July 25, 2009 at 2:59 PM
What Obama would sound like if he didn’t use a teleprompter.
Key West Reader on July 25, 2009 at 2:59 PM
Like others have mentioned, there was almost no reaction from anyone through this entire thing.
That can lead me to but one conclusion. That this is the norm……..
shudder
Jim708 on July 25, 2009 at 3:00 PM
Not to disagree with the party line but….
There are some really bad areas in California in dire need of good teachers in what appear to be hopeless situations. There are some teachers who have an almost missionary zeal and insane willingness to go into these bad areas and do the job no sane person would want do. Linking the student’s inevitable poor performance to these teacher’s heroic effort in their evaluations is unfair.
tommylotto on July 25, 2009 at 3:02 PM
I live in California and I can say this – think again.
commenter on July 25, 2009 at 3:02 PM
The Sad truth
A recent USA Today/Gallup poll updated a question first asked in 1937 about the public’s willingness to vote for presidential candidates from a variety of different genders, religions, and other backgrounds. While Americans overwhelmingly say they would vote for a black, woman, Catholic, or Hispanic president, they are less likely to say they would support a Mormon candidate, one who is 72 years old, or one who has been married three times.
William Amos on July 25, 2009 at 3:04 PM
She has a Wemon for Obama bumpersticker on her Prius.
guntotinglibertarian on July 25, 2009 at 3:04 PM
Like, totally, as such!
JetBoy on July 25, 2009 at 3:06 PM
She be having big hooters. I wonder if she can point me to a boob tree.
darwin on July 25, 2009 at 3:07 PM
You’ve never been to Santa Cruz, have you?
I’m glad this level of
crazystupid stays several hundred miles North of me, though.hindmost on July 25, 2009 at 3:08 PM
The ONE guy clapping at the end.
Priceless
clement on July 25, 2009 at 3:09 PM
So that puts to bed the myth “If these were brains…”
ericdijon on July 25, 2009 at 3:09 PM
Needs more cowbell.
fogw on July 25, 2009 at 3:11 PM
You wouldn’t want to see those things unleashed.
guntotinglibertarian on July 25, 2009 at 3:11 PM
i wonder if the members of city council took any of her advice.
SHARPTOOTH on July 25, 2009 at 3:11 PM
In case you’re looking:
You can grow any fruit or vegetable you want. That’s how they do it. They have fruit trees and vegetable trees. That’s where fruit and vegetables comes from.
— Brilliant Woman
And don’t worry about getting older:
You can freeze the fruit and vegetables, it will last forever. You can put, you know, broccoli or strawberries in the freezer. It will last forever.
— Brilliant Woman
But watch out for your berries, because:
If you don’t, you know, they might go bad in while, but.
— Brilliant Woman
So, now that we have you sorted out…
Loxodonta on July 25, 2009 at 3:12 PM
In Santa Cruz, she could be elected to the city council. In a landslide.
guntotinglibertarian on July 25, 2009 at 3:12 PM
Are you serious?
madmonkphotog on July 25, 2009 at 3:13 PM
I understand they’re looking into that slave thing. Free labor on free land.
guntotinglibertarian on July 25, 2009 at 3:14 PM
What is wrong with you today? This is California. Of course they did.
Loxodonta on July 25, 2009 at 3:16 PM
I Knew there were stupid people out there, but to see it up close and in real life is pretty depressing.
This woman is incredible, and I mean that sincerely, in the most unflattering way possible.
Have silkworms make cars? Fruits and vegetable trees? East coast slavery? Preservatives and pesticides for organic crops? What? WHAT?
Geronimo on July 25, 2009 at 3:16 PM
I understand they’re looking into that slave thing. Free labor on free land.
guntotinglibertarian on July 25, 2009 at 3:14 PM
according to the rocket scientist with the big hooters that’s on the east coast.
SHARPTOOTH on July 25, 2009 at 3:18 PM
Oh come ON. You would not.
BrideOfRove on July 25, 2009 at 3:18 PM
She is the TRUE definition of a ding bat!
grapeknutz on July 25, 2009 at 3:18 PM
Did she vote for Senator Boxer?
clorensen on July 25, 2009 at 3:18 PM
That girl is dumb as a stone, but it looks like she has a great big rack. I can put up with stupidity for a great big rack.
RWLA on July 25, 2009 at 3:19 PM
For that matter, if she just constantly blamed everything on Bush and the “evil” corporations she could run for president … and probably win.
I wonder how her boobs would poll …
darwin on July 25, 2009 at 3:19 PM
MMMMmmm….sweater puppies.
dinkyjackson on July 25, 2009 at 3:21 PM
Joe Biden is wondering why everyone is thinking this girl sounds stupid ?
William Amos on July 25, 2009 at 3:22 PM
I like the silk-worms.
Tzetzes on July 25, 2009 at 3:22 PM
That rack lost the gravity fight a long time ago.
guntotinglibertarian on July 25, 2009 at 3:22 PM
Well, I live in NY and tried watching this for 30 seconds, but then got annoyed and made my slave turn it off and go make me a sandwich.
Damn west coast union hippies…
Sir Corky on July 25, 2009 at 3:22 PM
I wonder if she has seen this video, and if she realizes just how moronic she comes off?
cozmo on July 25, 2009 at 3:22 PM
Certainly. Out of a sense of loyalty. After all, Senator Boxer taught her all she knows.
Loxodonta on July 25, 2009 at 3:22 PM
The problem with this girl is that she is probably teaching school.
thomasaur on July 25, 2009 at 3:22 PM
Thanks to the US Supreme Court that added “one-man-one-vote” to the Constitution (Warren Court), she’s got the same vote you have.
It’s just the slaves on the East Coast that only have a 3/5 vote (also in the Constitution; you know – the 3/5′s compromise?).
ManUFan on July 25, 2009 at 3:23 PM
Me, too. This is the sort of out-of-the box thinking we need to turn this Bush economy around.
guntotinglibertarian on July 25, 2009 at 3:23 PM
Me thinks she speaks with eloquence like our president Obambi. I can feel them tingles up me legs. ;)
poxoma on July 25, 2009 at 3:23 PM
Since Obama is going to destroy our innovation and inventiveness … no one will discover the anti-gravity bra.
darwin on July 25, 2009 at 3:24 PM
heh, remind me to never eat frozen food if I’m ever at her house.
bleech.
JetBoy on July 25, 2009 at 3:24 PM
is ahnuld’s staff the same way? if so it would explain a whole lot.
SHARPTOOTH on July 25, 2009 at 3:24 PM
Snort!
thomasaur on July 25, 2009 at 3:25 PM
He was trying to get her clapping too so her rack would jiggle.
OmahaConservative on July 25, 2009 at 3:25 PM
If she’s 33 now, she’s qualified to run for president.
And she looks much more than 33.
So, all she’ll have to do is produce a Certificate of Live Hatching.
Loxodonta on July 25, 2009 at 3:25 PM
They cut the part where she explained how dark matter can easily be converted to energy, and the simple demonstration of how to cheaply connect it to the existing grid for clean, free electricity. This was “the machine” she referred to.
The bastards.
Rhinoboy on July 25, 2009 at 3:28 PM
I got it! I broke the coded message in her speech.
Enslaved Chinese silk worms on the east coast are being forced to grow fruit on free land.
Where’s the outrage!?!?
madmonkphotog on July 25, 2009 at 3:28 PM
Did she imply we can make cars out of cotton?
yogi41 on July 25, 2009 at 3:28 PM
Maybe this is why I tend to like medium-breasted women. Is mental capacity inversely proportional to breast size? That’d explain the decline I’ve been in these last few years.
DarkCurrent on July 25, 2009 at 3:29 PM
Don’t worry too much about getting invited. Given her penchant for frozen strawberries, she might only serve daiquiris.
Loxodonta on July 25, 2009 at 3:29 PM
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