Paying for News

I am so outraged by this story that the Education Department actually paid a prominent black commentator to support the No Child Left Behind Act. Has this what it has come down to - taxpayer dollars being used for partisan advertising? Worse yet, has this what our "journalism" has come down to - commentators who speak not with their hearts but based on the swelling their pocketbooks will receive. SHAME! If the Bush administration has a shred of decency, it should apologize for the gaffe, and seek to recover the illegal payments.