Another New Mayor, Another School Takeover
David Nakamura of the Washington Post reports on incoming D.C. mayor Adrian Fenty. Atop his agenda? Taking over the failing D.C. school district. Like Antonio Villaraigosa, he does not intend to put his plan to a popular vote. The chairman of the D.C. Council, Vincent Gray, is quoted on why this might not be such a good idea:
Gray, who said he has talked with Fenty’s staff about general principles of the legislation, said he is not ready to endorse the takeover plan.
“We would be ill-advised not to let the public weigh in,” said Gray, who has promised to discard the council’s traditional education committee and assign the issue to the Committee of the Whole, which he will oversee as chairman. “If it appeared that the mayor has made up his mind and the council has made up its mind, the public would wonder what its role is.”
Meanwhile, that grizzled mayoral veteran, Gavin Newsom, is going nowhere near mayoral takeover.
