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White House defends czars, House to create yet another panel
By: David Freddoso
Online Opinion Editor
09/17/09 11:02 AM EDT
This morning, the Obama administration is defending its "czars" online -- among other things, claiming there are no "czars" as such and also telling Republicans, "Bush did the czar thing, too!"
Partisan bickering aside, if the real issue is the proliferation of low-profile functionaries who direct executive policy, dozens of whom are not confirmed by the Senate, then it's something in which both parties should be interested -- then, now, and in the future.
Along those lines, House Democrats will today pass a bill that creates a brand new federal government panel on "Green Schools."
"The Advisory Council on Green, High-Performing Public School Facilities" is tucked deep into the House education bill (HR 3221), which is better known for federalizing most student loans and inflating school construction costs with such provisions as the following:
None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this subtitle may be used for a project for the modernization, renovation, repair, or construction of a public school facility unless all of the iron, steel, and manufactured goods used in the project are produced in the United States.
The Green Schools panel, composed of representatives from the Department of Education and "the academic, architectural, business, education, engineering, environmental, labor, and scientific communities," will report to the Education Secretary on "the impact of green, high-performing schools" on "teaching and learning," "health," "energy costs," and "environmental impact."
If you believe that school construction should be thus micromanaged from Washington, D.C., then perhaps this is a good use of government resources.
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