Not unethical, but not smart
The week's news at a glance.
Washington, D.C.
An internal investigation has concluded that the Education Department did nothing unethical but did use “poor judgment,” when it hired commentator Armstrong Williams to promote President Bush’s education policy. Williams insisted he had always supported Bush’s “No Child Left Behind” law, but he didn’t mention it once until he started getting paid. Then he praised it in five columns over five months. President Bush said in January that the White House knew nothing about the Williams contract, but the report revealed that one Bush aide discussed the arrangement four times with education officials last summer, when the contract was renewed.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Brazil has a scorpion problem
Under The Radar Venomous arachnids are infesting country's fast-growing cities
-
Why Rikers Island will no longer be under New York City's control
The Explainer A 'remediation manager' has been appointed to run the infamous jail
-
California may pull health care from eligible undocumented migrants
IN THE SPOTLIGHT After pushing for universal health care for all Californians regardless of immigration status, Gov. Gavin Newsom's latest budget proposal backs away from a key campaign promise