Elections

Hillary Jabs Jeb Over Education Record, But Praised It Just Last Year [VIDEO]

Chuck Ross Investigative Reporter
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Hillary Clinton landed a clever blow against Jeb Bush Monday with a tweet slamming his education record as Florida governor, but she sang a different tune last year at an event in which she praised the Republican presidential candidate for his focus on the issue in the Sunshine state.

Of course, Clinton could have just been playing nice at the March 22, 2014 event for Academic Partnerships. The for-profit education company, which had Bush as a board member and an investor, paid the former secretary of state her usual $225,000 fee to speak to deans and academic officials from 250 universities.

During her talk at the event, which was held in Dallas, Clinton praised Bush as someone who “really focused on education during his time as governor in Florida and who has continued that work with passion and dedication in the years since.”

That sentiment was the opposite of what Clinton tweeted out Monday. Her campaign team edited a tweet that the Bush campaign sent out earlier in the day criticizing the Obama administration, which has overseen a doubling in student debt since President Obama took office.

Clinton recently proposed a plan to reduce student debt. It will cost $350 billion.

“Fixed it for you,” read the Clinton tweet, which cited a 2006 report from the Center for College Affordability and Higher Education which gave Florida an ‘F’ grade on college affordability. Bush served as governor there from 1999 to 2007.

The reminder that Clinton praised Bush in the past isn’t a pure political win for the Republican, who many believe has the best chance of defeating Clinton in the general election.

Rather, it’s a reminder that the two heirs to their families’ political dynasties are cozy with one another when the bright lights of the political stage are turned off.

Bush joined Academic Partnerships in 2011 and left last year as he began mounting his presidential bid. The company partners with colleges and universities to repackage classes in an online format. The universities pay the company about 50 percent of the tuition paid by students for the service, which cuts down on labor and maintenance costs.

It is unclear if Clinton’s new higher education plan will address for-profit education companies like Academic Partnerships. Her proposal takes aim at certain for-profit colleges and universities. That despite the fact that former President Bill Clinton was paid $16 million between 2010 and 2014 by Laureate Education, a for-profit university. (RELATED: Bill Clinton Was Paid More Than $16 Million By A For-Profit College Company)

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[h/t Phil Kerpen]

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