Cory Gardner Took $49.8K From Betsy DeVos and Family Before Confirming Her

On Tuesday, February 7, Betsy DeVos, President Donald Trump's controversial pick to head the Department of Education, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate only after Vice President Mike Pence cast a tie-breaking vote. As such, every "yea" was key, including the one delivered by Colorado Republican Senator Cory Gardner of Colorado, a persistent cheerleader for the selection who just happens to have benefited from the newly minted secretary's largesse.

According to the Center for American Progress, Gardner has received $49,800 in donations from DeVos and her family.
He's not the only one. DeVos, a vocal booster of charter schools and vouchers whose critics see her as an enemy of public education, is a big donor to conservative politicians, as are members of her well-heeled family; she's married to the heir of the Amway fortune. CAP reveals that the DeVos clan has given nearly $1 million to senators in the 115th Congress between the years of 1980 and 2016.

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As you can see, the amount of the donations to Gardner is fairly standard — and around half as much as the $98,300 given to Florida Senator Marco Rubio, as was pointed out by our sister paper, the Miami New Times.

Colorado's other U.S. senator, Democrat Michael Bennet, the onetime superintendent of Denver Public Schools, stood in opposition to DeVos. On the Senate floor, he said, "In our nation, education is supposed to be at the heart of opportunity. But today, our education system fails far too many kids."

Read more: http://www.westword.com/news/cory-gardner-took-498k-from-betsy-devos-and-family-before-confirming-her-8775719