Sen. Dick Durbin Drawn into Elite Chicago Public Schools investigation

The Chicago Sun-Times reports:

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin — the No. 2 Democrat in the U.S. Senate — is getting drawn into the growing investigation of how some students get admitted to Chicago’s selective-enrollment high schools.

In March, Durbin wrote a letter of recommendation for a staffer’s daughter to get into Jones College Prep, his office said Monday.


Though Durbin’s letter does not appear to violate any policies or guidelines, it comes amid revelations that a federal grand jury and the school system’s inspector general are investigating whether clout played a role in admitting students to the city’s most elite public high schools.

“It’s a principal pick so we’ll look at it,” Schools Inspector General James Sullivan said. “Did Durbin's letter influence this particular principal to exercise principal discretion for this particular student? ... The problem is, it’s all subjective. How many of those criteria [for admitting students outside the normal guidelines] do you have to have? Is one kid's hardship more difficult than another’s?”

It appears Dick Durbin helped a student cut to the head of the line while someone less "politically connected" didn't get in. This will become the model of health care with government running it. Everything becomes "constituent" service. Dick Durbin's ethics at work.