Gates pumps money into education issue for ’08 presidential race

Bill Gates is spending $30 million on the Unted States’ presidential campaign for a cause, not a candidate. The world’s richest man plans to make education the No. 1 domestic priority with voters. The 52-year-old Microsoft Corp. chairman has poured $3.4 billion into school improvements and scholarships since 2000 through his Seattle-based Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, according to the foundation’s records. Now the charity says it is providing half the money for Strong American Schools, a bipartisan group with a $60 million effort called “Ed in '08.”

The Washington-based organization, led by former Democratic Governor Roy Romer of Colorado, wants the next president to rally support for learning standards, increased pay and training for teachers, and longer class days and school years. It says those ideas would improve access to high-quality education, boost economic vitality and reduce the number of U.S. high school dropouts from 1.2 million a year. Read the Bloomberg news article.