Did you notice the embarrassingly comical manner in which Betsy DeVos conducted herself at her confirmation hearing earlier this week? Yeah, me neither. I watched portions of the grilling and thought DeVos handled herself with grace and fielded questions intelligently.
Apparently, the writers at the “Tonight Show” tuned into a parallel universe version of the hearings. I base this on the crude and buffoonish caricature of DeVos that they conjured up for last night’s show.
The education secretary was played by someone named Jo Firestone, who I am told is a comedienne by trade. In the bit, which runs a little over 3 minutes (making it 3 minutes too long), DeVos is portrayed as a ditz who can’t pronounce her own name or the name of the cabinet role she was just asked to assume.
Will this presidential election be the most important in American history?
Here’s the head-scratching video:
https://youtu.be/RCJDn-vkAi4
I can understand where the Democrats were hoping to crush DeVos’s chances of winning her cabinet post. This was partly because her philosophy of education is so radically different from theirs: She favors school choice while they favor pouring money on dysfunctional schools in the hopes they will magically sprout wings. Mainly, though, their vendetta against her was to spite Donald Trump.
But do they intend to vent their frustration through mean-spirited attacks like this?
To add irony to insult, DeVos has shown she actually has a sense of humor, tweeting out on Wednesday:
Day 1 on the job is done, but we’re only getting started. Now where do I find the pencils? 🙂 pic.twitter.com/0vRKF1opE9
— Betsy DeVos (@BetsyDeVos) February 9, 2017
Her attempt at lightheartedness was greeted with scorn by humorless teachers, who shot back comments like these:
@BetsyDeVos At the store. Something you should know: we teachers buy pencils and supplies for our classes with our OWN money.
— Robin McCauley Lynch (@RobinMcCauley) February 9, 2017
@BetsyDeVos you realize how NOT funny this is since most teachers buy their own supplies. But I bet you’re gonna pink slip them anyway.
— MalyndaHale (@MalyndaHale) February 9, 2017
And to think DeVos is the one Jimmy Fallon is singling out for ridicule!
