Apollo continues to politically "invest" in politicians about "education."
https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/indus.php?ind=H5300
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It's a shame that lobbyists and corrupt politicians on both sides of the isle have basically ruined higher education for the average person. Years ago I went to a for-profit trade school, got a great education at a very reasonable price and enjoyed a good paying career with my education. I easily paid my student loan off in 2 years with no problem. Of course years ago you could go straight into a manufacturing or construction job straight out of high school and make a good living. Today everyone requires a college degree for any type of job and that is why the costs are totally out of sight. If the price of a higher education is to ever become reasonable again, the federal government needs to get out of education.
There are tons of conflict of interest stories among both political parties. Much of it started under the Clinton Administration, and it's been a steady stream since then. Conflict of interest is actually the norm now, with "revolving door" lobbyists--going back and forth between industry and government--and helping grease the skids in government. Robert Eitel, who worked at Career Education (under Todd Nelson) and Bridgepoint after serving in the Bush Administration is the most glaring current example. Eitel is now in charge of the deregulation effort at the US Department of Education.
The shame of it all is a lot of the "non-profit" schools are just as bad if not worse than the for-profit schools but the Obama administration was ok with that. Look at how the DOE and IRS bent over backwards for ECMC to start their own non-profit education subsidiary to take over Corinthian Colleges. A student loan collection company owning colleges that rely on student loans, talk about a conflict of interest!
Yes, tons of for-profit college money flowed through DC over the years. And it came from Democrats as well as Republicans. Nancy Pelosi was a friend of Mr. Sperling for many years. Apollo Group had a stable of revolving door lobbyists but the heyday is long gone. The biggest influencers now are Bridgepoint and Career Education (through Robert Eitel and Warburg Pincus) as well as Apollo. Laureate also has some powerful ties, including the Clintons and their network.
The Podesta Group received millions from ECMC and Zenith Education Group. Rhey also contributed to the Clinton campaign and the DNC. Wonder how the make billions off the back of the tax payers.