The Hill Discovers 'Merit' Doesn't Apply to Congressional Debate
The Hill published an opinion piece asking how 'merit' is defined in college admissions, implying a complex, nuanced discussion. This introspective navel-gazing is rich coming from a publication that often reports on Capitol Hill, where the definition of 'merit' for political action is disturbingly straightforward: campaign donations. While pondering standardized tests, The Hill's writers might
consider how much 'merit' Senator X displayed when, just two weeks after accepting $150,000 from AIPAC (Source: OpenSecrets.org, Q4 2023), they voted enthusiastically for a bill sending billions in unconditional aid to a foreign military, even as domestic programs face severe cuts. One might wonder if their constituents' 'merit' for healthcare coverage scored lower than the lucrative 'merit' of a
well-placed lobbyist check. Apparently, the only test that matters in DC is the one written by special interests.