Look Out, It's Voucher Man

A California tycoon is betting $20 million that he can persuade voters to turn education upside down

Visualize this: Timothy Draper, the gonzo venture capitalist from Silicon Valley, swoops into a South Central Los Angeles church to preach the gospel of school vouchers to a group of black ministers. He is introduced--by his own advance man--as "an instrument of God's hand, like Rosa Parks." Never mind that this is a 42-year-old multimillionaire preppie known to ski in boxer shorts and throw Frisbees at conferences, who even dressed as Batman to inaugurate a Manhattan office. Today, Draper tells the assembled pastors, he is ready to spend at least $20 million of his fortune to "fix education." Moreover, he adds,...

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