The battle to transform the public school system in America has created strange bedfellows indeed. Chris Matthews just broke ranks with his Democratic Party on the issue of education reform. He actually used the word "competition" as a way to lift students out of failing schools. Speaking from Tampa after hearing Jeb Bush's speech on the state of education Matthews praised the Republican, called him a "humble" man, and flatly disagreed with Rachel Maddow's assembled panel of Al Sharpton, Ed Schultz and Chris Hayes. Perhaps Matthews' view was softened by Jeb Bush's earlier comments about Republicans: "We have to change not necessarily our core beliefs, but the tone of our message...and the intensity of it, for sure." Matthews went on to say "Randi Weingarten [AFT union] hasn't done a good job for our city [DC]; we don't have a good mayor who lost the best superintendent [Michelle Rhee] we've ever had in education."  Four years ago, President Obama gave Rhee a shout out in his 2008...(Read Full Post)