ms. devos' nomination, i would like to share examples of a few who exemfly the deep concerns i am hearing. one teacher wrote, mrs. devos is not versed on the real concerns of families and their children and does not know the issues and concerns educators face in our schools. as a teacher in a public school, i believe she's completely unqualified to lead the department of education. she does not understand the definition of proficiency and she did not know that children are protected by federal laws, the disability act. as a parent i do not believe mrs. devos understands the concerns middle-income families have regarding their children and their futures. she also does not believe that guns should be kept out of our schools. this proves how out of touch she is with our students, their families, and teachers. i think many americans agree with the sentiment that mrs. devos is out of touch and out of step with the needs of working families. neither she nor the president have much of any experience w

ms. devos complied with our committee rules. she testified in our confirmation hearings. she has answered our follow-up questions. based on my research, she is the most questioned education secretary in the history of the senate. , basedtwo is probably me on what happened in 1991. she has provided information about what she owns, about to whom she owes it, about whether she has paid her taxes, about who her campaign contributions are, and she has reached an agreement with the office of government ethics, which is constituted by law, to work with each cabinet committee and determine if there are any conflicts of interest and, if the independent on -- independent office judges that there is, the nominee has to find a way to deal with that. ms. devos has reached an agreement with the office of government ethics. as a result of that, the office says that she has no conflicts of interest. let me be specific about this process and so much attention has been paid in the committee and outside about the

ms. devos does not agree with these principles. when i say thousands, put that in context. we're the second-smallest state in the union. thousands have contacted me. i share these concerns with my fellow vermonters. they know my children went to public schools. they want to be able to send their children to public schools too. they want the best of education. i'm telling these vermonters, i will not support this confirmation. it is dangerous and shortsighted to confirm someone who has so much to learn about our nation's public schools and the challenges they face. universal free public schools are a revolutionary american invention. it has tepid -- it has helped make america the great nation it is today. in the united states, we should strengthen public schools, not snub them. ms. devos is the wrong choice for our children and also for our nation's future. our public schools need strong leadership, not someone who's made her life work to undermine their success. so i oppose this nomination. i h

ms. devos has argued for the same thing for children. why is an idea that helped create the greatest generationon and the greatest colleges of the world so dangerous for schools? but i would argue she is been among the forefront of the leaders like the governors for the most successful reform of the last 30 years to change and improve public education and that would be the public charter schools.hools those began with 1 12 schools in minnesota created by the democratic former labour party in the early 1900s. since been charter schools schools have been supported by every president, presidentarly 1 obama, president clinton,n.de presidents bush, president obama is most recent education secretary was a fount of charter schools. this congress four times by a person majority has supported charter schools. the last 69 states education secretaries have supportedar charter schools. charter schools have grown from 12 democratic former labor schools to 6808 and 2.7 million and 2.7 million children go the

ms. devos at noon today. now, the nominee for attorney general has huge importance, far greater importance than the nominee would have had three, four weeks ago. and we need a lot of discussion on that. what we've seen is a president who belittles judges when they don't agree with him. what we've seen is a president who is willing to shake the roots of the constitution and a fundamental premise, no religious test that's embodied in our constitution within his first few weeks in office. so we certainly need an attorney general who will stand up to that president. we've seen other attorneys general do it. most notably in the clinton administration. senator sessions, i ride with him on the bike in the gym, but he is not, if you can say one thing about him, he's not independent of donald trump. he's supported donald trump from the very beginning. he -- even when donald trump didn't look like he was going to be much of a candidate. and if you had to pick someone who would not stand up to a president

ms. devos, i was sitting where you sat, you are sitting. and as the nominee for u.s. secretary of education and former senator howard of ohio said to me, well, governor, i've heard some disturbing things about you, but i'm not going to bring them up here. and in 2009 and 2016 for president obama is education secretary nominees, so we will consider you and then vote. just as we did then. arne duncan, president obama is first education secretary, the hearing was on the 13th of january. he was confirmed in a week later. john king, the hearing was on february 25 and he was confirmed two and a half weeks later. we received from ms. devos, and each senator has had available since january 4th, the committees required forms. the rules require them to be in more than a week in advance. the fbi background check has been done and we have heard the results. ms. devo thomas has provided the office of government ethics on december 12 of all relevant information about her financial affairs. we'll have a lett

ms. devos has failed to make the grade. she didn't seem to know about the federal education law that guarantees education to students with disabilities. she couldn't unequivocally say that guns shouldn't be in the schools. and she didn't seem to know about a long simmering debate in education policy about measuring growth versus proficiency. frankly, ms. devos' answers at the hearings were embarrassing. not only for her, but for my republican colleagues on the committee who rushed her nomination through with five minutes of questions, only one round and at 5:00 p.m. madam president, cabinet secretaries can't be expected to know everything, but this is different. the nominee for secretary of education doesn't know some of the most basic facts about education policy. she has failed to show proficiency, and there is no longer any time for growth. mr. president -- madam president, the american people are speaking in one loud voice against this nominee. i've had many people come up to me in new york

ms. devos refused to commit on that issue. she has earned a failing grade for lack of study, complete lack of diligence in preparing for her testimony and to lead in higher education programs. her commitment to protect students and veterans from massive debt, low quality education standards and accountability or pernicious for-profit companies and leaders deserves a failing grade as well. i will not support a nominee who fails to agree that predatory practices, exploitation of taxpayers, and deception of students have no place in our education system while mrs. devos evaded questions about bringing accountability to school, she also refused to commit to keeping guns out of school. when asked by my colleague, chris murphy, whether guns have anyplace in or around schools, mrs. devos gave the following reply -- quote -- "i would imagine that there is probably a gun in schools to protect from potential grizzlies." end quote. that statement has given a lot of amusement to a lot of people around the

like ms. devos would least expect. yet it also cannot be denied that the students here begin their journey on ground that is unequal to that of other kids who are not people of color or are not part of the public school system, et cetera. these bright young sap links are being -- sap lings are being crushed before given the chance. mrs. devos' shortcomings will only serve to perpetuate and make worse. mrs. devos given her support of the privatization of public schools and her open disdain towards the lgbt community has established that she will not improve the experiences of marginalized communities. her interest is not the bermt of education for people but the monetization of education. she will never spearhead movements that promote education and will continuously disappoint us all throughout her term which will not be defined by deviating from the status quo and creating a system that our troubled by gifted youth can thrive in. in fact, she will dot opposite. with this in mind, i ask that you, se

ms. devos. i have been flooded with phone calls, e-mails, social media messages from virginians all across the commonwealth. in many ways, in numbers that i haven't seen since the debate about the a.c.a. these virginians worry about ms. they worry that it would -- what it would mean for our children, our students and for progress towards proving and providing every child with a quality public education, regardless of their zip code. like many of my colleagues, i bring to the debate some direct experience as both a state or local elected official. i had the great soarn of serving as governor of virginia. i was responsible in that job for how we were preparing our students for success in college and the work force. i took this responsibility very, very personally, as somebody who attended good public schools all his life. i was lucky enough to be the first of my family to graduate from college. i realize that i wouldn't have been able to be governor or obviously, for that matter, senator without

frankly, ms. devos' answers at the hearings were embarrassing. not only for her but for my republican colleagues on the committee who rushed her nomination through with five minutes of questions, only oned know madam president,, cabinet sectors can't be expected tog, s know everything, but this is different. the nominee for secretary of education doesn't know some of the most basic facts about t education policy. she has failed to show proficiency, and there is no longer any time for growth. >> mr. president, madam president, the american people t are speaking in one loud voice against this nominee. i've had many people come up to meet in new york and said iut voted for donald trump, i making calls about this nominee.tes hae americans across the country and red states and blue states haves been flooding our offices with phone calls and e-mails, asking the senate to vote no on betsyhm devos. local newspaper editorial boards, many of them that endorsed trump, are saying the same thing. my friends, the senators from maine and alaska were profiled in

as to ms. devos, i ask consent to put in the record following my remarks an article by -- why the senate should promptly confirm betsy devos as the united states education secretary, which i believe it will do soon. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. alexander: thank you, mr. president. ms. devos will be an excellent education secretary. she has a commitment to public education. she's said that. but there's no better example of that than her work on the most important reform of public schools in the last 30 years, which is charter schools. charter public schools are the fastest-growing reform of public education to give teachers more freedom and parents more choices, and she's been at the forefront of that public school activity. second, she's spent her time, true, helping to give low-income parents more choices and better schools for their chin. but is that a reason not to support her? i mean, i would be surprised if any president supported an education secretary who didn't support charte

i asked ms. devos in the hearing would she work to implement that regulation or work to undermine it. she gave me no answer. she certainly -- that imis supported by everybody. undoing it would be a giant headache for everybody who works in education. yet she would not commit to keeping it in place. and then i asked her another super simple no-brainer when we submitted written questions. i said, with you support of maintenance of the civil right a collection system. once every two years you have to report the data the performance on your minority kids in your state's schools. once every two years you have to submit this report. it is really important because it is the only way that the dent of education -- the department of education can figure out if minority children are getting a raw deal. they wouldn't even commit to maintain the data collection never mind do anything with it. and so at some point you've got to figure out where there's smoke there's fire. she's been given all these opportunities to

>> we are here because we cannot let ms. devos control -- >> some teachers are against the nomination of betsy devos. she spent millions of her personal money promoting vouchers. there's a confirmation hearing set for early next week. two republicans have said they will vote against her. one more republican would have to join them for her confirmation to fail. >>> as we continue to see demonstrations in philadelphia, there are activists taking their message straight to lawmakers. both pennsylvania senators confirm they are hearing a large response from people. the out reach is growing over the phone, by e-mail and by fax. >> regardless of which side of the political spectrum you live on, i think that these are times that are really exciting because people are getting involved. >> some lawmakers tell us they've had to switch staff and work extra hours just to keep up with the intense call volume. >>> disagreement over the number of visas revoked since president

many people have pointed out that ms. devos will staff the department with people who understand these things, and she can use her leadership role to push schools in a new direction. host: alyson klein, reporter for "education week," thank you for joining us today. guest: thank you for having me. host: up next, we have our spotlight on magazines with "wired magazine's" emily dreyfuss looking at how the impacting not only immigrants for those working in health care and technical fields. we will be right back. ♪ >> i am a white male, and i am prejudiced. the reason, it was something i di was not taught, but it was something i learned. i do not like to be forced to like people, i like to be led to like people through example, and what can i do to change, you know, to be a better american. heather: that was a remarkable moment. i did not realize until i stepped off the set that there were more calls after that and how powerful it was. it was something in his voice that touched me, i mean, you could hear it, it was so authentic as h

voss is a choice test ms. devos is a choice -- mr.oss is a choice for the secretary of education of the united states because she lacks experience. another reason is she has no plans. the plants she does have may result in harm to the public education system -- the plans she does have may result in harm to the public school system. she does not understand the public schools have the same impact on students as private schools and should be treated fairly. this affects my community as many cannot afford private schools. if mrs. the malls were to become secretary of education, she would harm the public school system and make -- and leave many students without education. the: if you want to watch ongoing talkathon, you can head over to c-span2 and we are going to be talking more about the efforts to oppose betsy devos's nomination. return at our desk to congressman michael burgess. he has served as chairman of a key congressional panel, the energy and commerce subcommittee on health. what role is that panel and you playing in this effort

as i have said after reviewing the record of ms. devos, i believe she lacks the commitment to public education needed to effectively lead the department of education. i am deeply concerned she will not focus on priorities important to hoosier families. expanding access to early childhood education, improving our public schools, and addressing increasing student loan debt. now i want to share some of the concerns i have heard from people all across indiana about betsy devos. a current undergraduate student at perdue urging me to vote against betsy devos. the student wrote as follows: i am concerned she will cause major damage not only to our public k-12 schools of which i graduated from but also to federal student aid programs which allow many of my fellow students and i to attend our nation's fantastic public universities. the mother of three children in fishers wrote, i believe our democracy needs well funded and accountable public schools for all. ms. devos demonstrates little interest in supporting strong public education. for the futu

but i am confident that betsy devos will be confirmed next week. >> ms. you do not have that level of confidence in ms. devos. >> this is an awful nomination. she is the most supremely unqualified nom neinee for secretary of education ever. i think that's why you're seeing this incredible outburst of confusion and anger on the parts of parents and teachers and advocates for children with disabilities. the kinds of programs that are managed by the department of education. she seems to have absolutely no idea, i.d.e.a. of what she's talking about. we've had over 1 million e-mails sent through the website that we set up and i know there's a lot more. and for that -- that's why we're at this 50/50 cliff-hanger right now. we need one, one more brave senator to crossover and actually start listening to all of those phone calls and e-mails that are jamming them and listen to the people that are saying please don't send us someone so highly unqualified. >> lilly, is there one you're focussing on? is there one you think you can persuade? >> one of the things i was

ms. devos's arrival. on the other end teachers and parents held a peaceful vigil to promote public education. they joined the president of the washington teachers' union to voice their concerns about devos's new role. >> we simply cannot be on the sideline allowing things to happen to our public school system without voicing our concerns and raising our voice and resisting things that will be harmful to our kids. >> saying shame on you mike pence. and it's spelled incorrectly because we are selling our school department short in 2017. ms. devos does not belong as the secretary of education. >> sometimes i was brought up in the public schools, and i taught in the public schools and we have support for public schools. >> reporter: jefferson memorial junior high is a community based public school with many students who come from low incoam sabling tear devos has been -- secretary devos has been criticized for her lack of experience with public education and her focus on charter schools. the secretary's first

ms. betsy devos. i cannot vote for her confirmation. the department of education's mission is to promote student achievement in preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access. ms. harris: the department achieves this by establishing policies on federal financial aid for education and distributing as well as monitoring those funds. collecting data on america's schools and disseminating research, focusing national attention on key educational issues, prohibiting discrimination, and ensuring equal access to education. and after considering that mission, i do not believe betsy devos should be the next secretary of education. surely we can agree every child in the united states should have access to a first-rate education to ensure a chance of a good job and good pay. i know this from my own life experiences and in particular the impact that a good teacher can have on a young child. you see, my first grade teacher, mrs. francis wilson, god rest her soul, attended my law school graduation.

ms. devoes in a meeting in the oval office on tuesday, he wanted her to drop her opposition. a protest is under way at the iconic stonewall in new york where demonstrators are vowing to keep protections for transgender students. tonight, trump appears to be sympathetic of the 2016 campaign. here is what he said on the "today" show just last april. >> one of the best answers i heard was from a commentator said yesterday. lever it the way it is. people go and use the bathroom that they feel is appropriate. there is been little trouble. >> so why the decision now and just the other day to reignite this cultural. lavern cox, she's best known of the series of "orange is the new black." what this would mean to real people? >> first of all, thank you very much for having me here today. when loretta lynch made that incredible statement last year, i was so moved and i felt for the first time that our federal government is acknowledging the dignity of transgender people and it felt like we were turning corners. these -- yesterday of proving this guideline it feels like we are moving ba

when questioned in a hearing by my colleague, senator franken, it was clear ms. devos didn't know the difference between two basic theories of testing. proficiency and growth. >> lantos, award recipient and iraqi parliament member, on president trump's travel ban. >> iraqi soldiers' blood were mixed with the american soldiers' blood on the iraqi oil. we appreciate that they gave xception for the minorities. but it's unjust to enlist iraq with countries that country them terrorists. of was in my home city charleston where the civil war began. it was in my home city of charleston where nearly 40% of all the slaves that came to america would come through, charleston, south carolina. and it was a charlesan who came up with -- charles to enian who came up with the concept writ noon our constitution, 3/5 of a man. >> members of congress conduct a panel on opioid abuse. >> because the very difficult to understand why someone would keep on taking fentanyl when they're already overdosed. it generates that is brain state of -- equivalent to deprivation. it's a sense that is send

ms. devos's education policy. during the confirmation hearing, there were moments when she didn't seem to grasp important parts of federal law on education. "the washington post" published an article called "six astonishing things betsy devos said and refused to say at her confirmation hearing." and i quote -- "devos refused to agree with a democrat that schools are no place for guns, citing one school that needs one to protect against grizzly bears. when senator chris murphy asked her if guns don't belong in schools, she said, i will refer backer senator enzi and the school he was talking about in wyoming. i think probably there there is probably a one in the school to protect against potential grizzlies. this would be hi layerus if if -- hilarious if this weren't so serious, or if this weren't the person about to become our secretary of education. when asked if she would support president trump if he has promised to move to end gun-free zones around schools, she said i will support whatever the president does. i

ms. devosresisted signing off on the order and told president trump she was uncomfortable with it according to three republicans with direct knowledge. mr. sessions pressed her to relent because he could not go forward without her consent since the order must come from the justice and education departments. it's important to remember the rhetoric of candidate trump was notably muted on the subject saying the issue of trans rights should be left to the states. he never expressed it to anything close to a priority. but president trump sided with his attorney general telling ms. devos that he wanted her to drop her objections. white house press secretary sean spicer today claimed betsy devos was on board with the new guidance coming from the justice department 100%. >>> joining me now, julie fernandez, former deputy assistant attorney general in the civil rights division of the justice department, now a senior policy analyst of the society foundation. first let's talk about this -- the justice dep

i predict all of these nominees will be confirmed, including ms. devos. the new supreme court nominee will be confirmed. and i think that's what the people in our country want. this was a change versus status quo election. i know to some extent all elections are. but this clearly was a change versus status quo election, and the people voted for change, and we're going provide that change. >> isn't it the job of the united states senator, whether democrat senator, republican senator, to properly vet all of these nominees? >> sure, it is. and that's what we're doing. now, the problem we had today is, some of the democrats just wouldn't come to the committee hearing. i don't know how you can vet somebody if you review to come. that is their prerogative. under the rules, they can do that. let me say it again, even if it wasn't under the rules, this is america. they can believe what they want. but this idea that these nominees have not been properly vetted, that they haven't been asked tough questions, that's just nonsense. that's nonsense on a stick. >> what

. >> when questioned by my colleague senator franken it was clear ms. devos didn't know the difference between two basic theories of testing. proficiency and growth. this, in fact, one of the biggest debates occurring in the education community today. and she was unaware of the significance of the nuance and the difference between the two. >> two republican senators say they will join democrats to vote no on devos. that could set up a "fifty shades of grey" tie that would -- that could set up a 50/50 tie. >>> fox news takes a look at some of the hits and misses in the super bowl commercials. >> reporter: this is the add too controversial for the super boat. a massive wall stopping a mother and daughter from entering the u.s. during the game the wall was never shown. and it ended before they ever reached the border. teasing viewers to the company's website where the ad continues. >> this was overtly just wept after it, and a lot of people didn't appreciate it. there are not many super bowl advertisements that just go flat line like that. the overall grade here

is it fair to say that ms. devos does not believe in public education? >> it's absolutely fair. she has spent millions of dollars funding candidates who are opposed to public education, she has funded anti-public education people all over the country. she's had huge influence in michigan, michigan is now not only an all choice state. she tried to promote a referendum to put vouchers into the state constitution, and it was turned down overwhelmingly. 69-31. she tried and failed on vouchers, still, there are hundreds of charter schools, michigan is the only state in the country where 80% of the charters operate for profit, that's the way she likes it. >> what do you make of -- and i know the simple answer is politics, i want to go a little deeper than that. i know you can. let's submerge. what do you make of what congress did? what the senate did in approving an education secretary who clearly based on the record is not a supporter of or believer in public education. what was that about? was it making sure donald trump didn't lose one early on? why would an otherwise reasonable se

when questioned in the hearing by my colleague senator franken, it was clear ms. devos didn't know the difference between two basic theories of testing, proficiency and growth. >> lantos, iraqi parliament member on president trump's travel ban. >> translator: iraqi shoulders blood mixed with the american soldiers blood on the iraqi soil. we appreciate that the order gave exception for the minorities. but it is unjust and unfair to enlist iraq with the countries that are considered terrorists. >>> senator scott reflects on his hometown of charleston, south carolina. >> it was in my home city of charleston where the war began. it was in charleston where nearly 40% of all the slaves that came to america would come through charleston, south carolina. it was a charlestonian who came up with the concept written into our constitution three-fifths of a man. >> and a panel on opioid abuse. >> it's difficult to understand why they would still keep take ing more when the mother already overdosed. it is the brain state of equivalent to deprivation. it's sending the message, if you

. >> ms. devos has failed to make the grade. >> if you cannot be a champion of public schools, you should not be secretary of education. >> will vice president mike pence make history by casting an unprecedented tiebreaker. >>> an appeals court set to hear arguments over the president's travel ban, as the white house issues a compromise that would allow an exception for some travelers. >>> stormy weather. powerful systems acro

. >> a vote for ms. devos is a vote to destroy our public school system. >> what's wrong with giving low income americans more choices of better schools? >> reporter: the next step, a final vote on skrjeff sessions. >> he's the wrong, wrong, wrong choice. >> it's all politics. >> reporter: the federal appeals panel hears arguments tonight on whether to reinstate the temporary travel ban. >> i actually can't believe we're having to fight to protect the security in a court system to protect the security of our nation. >> it is absolutel criminating against muslims. >> reporter: the administration is confident they'll win despite 18 states, dozens of national security officials and nearly 100 tech companies arguing against them. >> we're going to prevail on this on the merits of the case because it is done so in a very lawful way. >> reporter: a rules is expected soon after tonight's argument to resume the ban or keep it on hold. depending on which way the judges seem to be moving here, the government's given the

more than 25 years ago, ms. devos, i was sitting where you sat, you are sitting. and as the nominee for u.s. secretary of education and former senator howard of ohio said to me, well, governor, i've heard some disturbing things about you, but i'm not going to bring them up here.

. >> a vote for ms. devos to destroy our public school system. >> what's wrong with giving low income americans more choices of better schools? >> reporter: the next step, a final vote on skrjeff sessions. >> he's the wrong, wrong, wrong choice. >> it's all politics. >> reporter: the federal appeals panel hears arguments tonight on whether to reinstate the temporary travel ban. >> i actually can't believe we're having to fight to protect the security in a court system to protect the security of our nation. >> it is absolutel

. >> a vote for ms. devos is a vote to destroy our public school system. >>. >> reporter: a final vote on jeff sessions as attorney general. >> he's the wrong, wrong, wrong choice. >> it's all politics. >> reporter: president trump met with sheriffs to federal appeals panel. >> i actually can't believe that we're having to fight to protect the security -- in a court system to protect the security of our nation. >> it is absolutely clear that the intent of this is to discriminate against muslims. >> reporter: the administration is confident they'll win despite 18 states, dozens of national security officials, mostly democrats and nearly 100 tech companies arguing against them. >> we're going to prevail on this on the merits of the case because it is done in a very lawful way. >> reporter: a ruling is expected to resume the ban or keep it on hold. now, those oral arguments start just under two hours from now and they will be streamed live online. so you'll get to hear them. if it looks like the court is siding w

but attorney general jeff sessions, who has opposed expanding transgender rights, pushed ms. devoso relent. "come on, betsy, they won't let me discriminate against black people. just give me this one." ( laughter ) i need something! ( applause ) ( cheers and applause ) jeff sessions fans. jeff sessions fans. >> jon: yeah. >> stephen: huge jeff sessions fans here tonight. ( laughter ) ultimately, trump sided with sessions, and, when devos was faced with the alternative of resigning or defying the president, she agreed to go along. ( audience booing ) so betsy devos knew it would harm children and did it, anyway, to save her job. how does she sleep at night? i'll let the states decide. ( laughter ) ( piano riff ) now here's a shocker -- trump didn't tweet anything about it. in fact, he's had only four tweets the last two days. i'm starting to worry. did someone cut off his thumbs? what is happening? ( laughter ) what is going on? is the "new york times" not #failing enough? has he not gone to the bathroom in two days? what's going on? ( applause ) we might have a hint -- ( applause )

we wrote to ms. devos about this. the first letter was on januar january 5, 2017. we got an answer and the answer was spectacularly incomplete and unhelpful. so we wrote back a second letter on january 27. i would like to take a minute and read this letter because i think it explains our predicament. elisabeth devos, washington, dc dear mrs. devos, thank you to your response of january -- i ask unanimous consent that the january 5 letter be made an exhibit at the end of my remarks. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. whitehouse: our january 5 letter

. >> ms. devos has failed to make the grade. >> we do not want to go backwards and we are one vote away from changing where we are on this nomination. >> reporter: as it stands the senate is divided, 50-50 over the pick, which means she would be confirmed by the deciding vote from vice president mike pence. democrats want to block that vote. meanwhile, several states want to block president donald trump's temporary travel ban. >> yes, of course the president has broad powers with these executive orders, but it is not unfeterred. >> the ninth circuit court of appeals will hear oral arguments today. >> we will defeat radical islamic terrorism and we will not allow it to take root in our country. not going to allow it. >> reporter: the president tweeting the threat is very real adding the courts must act fast. >> reporter: this will be a one-hour argument in front of a three-judge panel. each side will have 30inutes to make their case. edward >>> by tonight the city of fairfax will have a new mayor. po

this person, ms. devos does not deserve to be secretary of education. >> she'll be an excellent education secretary in my judgment. and an important one for this country. >> the senate also voted to repeal a regulation that requires energy companies to disclose payments made to foreign governments. >> new this morning, we're getting a look at the january jobs report. the department of labor says 227,000 jobs were added last month. the job gains were mostly seen among retail trade construction and financial industries. the unemployment rate was barely changed at 4.8% compared to 4.7 in december. up next, metro's big weekend shut down. the six stations off limits to passengers and how to get around the closures. >> a texas, this is sure to be one of the most popular places in the u.s. this weekend. i'll show you that picture a little later. the super bowl will be played on finding a missing 12-year-old. you see a picture here. if you the young boy was last seen near howard middle school of math and science. i

president trump sided with his attorney general, republicans said, and told ms. devos in a meeting in the oval office on tuesday that he wanted her to drop her opposition and devos faced with the alternative, resigning or going against the president, went along. >> the conclusions everybody in the administration is agreed upon. there's no daylight between anybody, between the president, between any of the secretaries. >> democrats denounced the president's move. u.s. senator caramel lahair ris said revoking federal protections for transgender students is an appalling decision. shame fp. washington governor said schools in his stlat continue to protect transgender students. and "america's got talent" star jackie ivancha tweeted to the president about her transgender sister saying, you gave me the honor to sing at your inauguration, please give me and my sis the honor to meet with you and talk transgender rights. while this ruling lets them decide how to treat trans students and he said barring transgender people from bathrooms is discriminatory. >> if caitlyn jenner wer

any republicans who wanted to vote against ms. devos would've done so already. we know of the two appeared do you know of any others that long-ago telegraphed that? >> i think we would know what the vote count is. the margins are thin on everything. i think with greater surety we will say it is a fit and 50 tie and vice president pants for common which is very historic. it's the only time the vice president has broken that tie. neil: what if you make of that senator come in many of the left say even if she gets in, she's damaged goods. sometimes you get an and people soon forget the vote. but this will weigh on her and hold the leash on her. >> you know, what i look at a shia secretary of education. but more important issues before all of us than education of children for the next generation. we should be supportive once the voting is done. we should be supportive of that nominee. the bill we passed last year, bipartisan, every student succeed, which pushes much of the decision-making to the state and local communities, which is by and that is what we want to lo

. >> frankly, ms. devos' answers the hearings were embarrassing. not only for her but for my republican colleagues on the committee. >> susan collins of maine and lisa murkowski of alaska say they will vote no so it is setting up to be a 50/50 vote in the senate. pence said he believes devos will be confirmed. >> it will be my honor to cast the tie-breaking vote. >> there is frustration because at this stage in 2009, president obama had 11 cabinet secretaries confirmed and a defense secretary who continue to serve. president trump has four so far. republicans complained this is the slowest confirmation. since george washington. senate g.o.p. leaders plan to finish four more this week. devos, jeff sessions for attorney general, dr. tom price for health and human services, and steven mnuchin for treasury. the more consequential fight will come over the nomination of judge neil gorsuch for the supreme court. today the judge reached out to more democrats. gorsuch met with a senator from montana. and he met with the top democrat on the judiciary committ

a vote for ms. devos is a vote to destroy our public school system. >> this marks the first time the vice president had to break a tie on a cabinet nomination. vice president pence is expected to swear in devos tonight. shortly after the confirmation, the vice president tweeted today's vote to confirm education secretary betsy devos was a vote for every child having a chance at a world-class education. >>> democrats have been concerned about devos because she's a longtime critic of public schools. >> she's also been a strong backer of private and charter schools. tim furlong found out how devos could impact the school choice debate right here in our area. >> reporter: the protests against her were loud. >> we are here because our children deserve better. >> reporter: but today with the vice president casting the deciding vote, betsy devos was confirmed. >> this is not a job for amateurs. >> reporter: even two republican senators who voted against her. but like her or not, some say she'll push for more loc

. >> ms. devos failed to make the grade. >> if you cannot be a champion of public schools, you should not be secretary of education. >> will vice president mike pence make history by casting an unprecedented tiebreaker. >>> an appeals court set to hear arguments over the president's travel ban, as the white house issues a compromise that would allow an exception for some travelers. >>> stormy weather. powerful systems across the

individual or somebody you feel that is going to dismantle a public education system such is the case of ms. devosif you're concerned that somebody you voted for, if you look at utah, salt lake city especially, although they may have supported representative chaffetz, many of them didn't support donald trump. and if they did, they supported him to bring back jobs, not defund planned parenthood or issue a travel ban. >> heather: they have a right to ask questions, but where a lot of folks will question it, when it comes to blocking somebody from getting in, blocking somebody's free speech, the animosity that we are seeing. beverly, what are your thoughts on that? >> there is a place for free speech. we support that. we support peaceful protest. but what we are seeing whether it is on inauguration day, whether it's uc berkeley, what you are seeing is an effort to not have an open discussion. we should have an open discussion with people. there are major issues going on across the country. and i think it's extremely damaging when protests not only get physical but limit the discussion americans reall