From news reports: The Obama Administration has announced a national competition, much like Race To The Top, to create voucher programs. However, unlike RTTT, states may not hire consultants. From reports:

Said Arne Duncan, “For ‘Race to the Top’, my staff was reading the same application over and over again. Only the state names changed.”

To prove his point, he brought up the winning applications of Maryland and Hawaii. “Honestly, we were just flipping coins at the end,” he said.

Also in the news:

President Obama clearly planted his Administration’s flag in the school choice camp today, going so far as to express admiration for state leaders such as Mitch Daniels of Indiana, Chris Christie of New Jersey and Tom Corbett of Pennsylvania.

“Those guys have been so right on this issue for so long, and I just didn’t see it. I’m trying to put a Beer Summit together between them, Eleanor Holmes Norton, George Miller and the NEA to get the truth about school choice out there.”