Voucher Money Games in Pennsylvania
How one lucky poker player is changing PA politics
Peter Greene explains that the school choice lobby in Pennsylvania is primarily backed by a single funder, Jeff Yass. As Greene explains it, Yass made it big winning at poker, then started an investment business, and spends a lot of his cash promoting GOP candidates who promise to privatize public education.
Students First PAC emerged in 2010, and it is very simply, Pennsylvania gazillionaire Jeffrey Yass dressed up in a PAC suit. He is their sole contributor. It appears they haven't even bothered to maintain a website since shortly after their founding. Yass is the richest man in the state, a guy who won his initial stake playing poker, then moved into the investment biz.
Who does Students First PAC mostly give money to these days? Mainly the Commonwealth Children's Choice Fund. The website Transparency USA shows CCCF taking in $31,763,400. Of that, $31,505,000 came from Students First PAC. The #2 contributor is Clay Hamlin with a measley $100K.
This poker winner has (so far) spent $30 million+ to influence politics in PA - and, specifically, to convince lawmakers to privatize public schools.
Gross.
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