Monday, April 13, 2009

That other "choice"

School choice. Which union-supported Democrats are against. Obama stays silent as Congress allows a DC voucher program to expire. Deroy Merdock:

With young black kids themselves begging for vouchers, why would reputedly pro-poor, pro-black Democrats kill this popular and effective school-choice program?

Follow the money: Teachers’ unions paid $55,794,440 in political donations between 1990 and 2008, 96 percent of it to Democrats. Sen. John Ensign’s (R., Nev.) March 10 amendment to rescue D.C.’s vouchers failed 39-58. Among 57 Democrats voting, 54 opposed D.C. vouchers. These 95 percent of Senate Democrats nearly equal their party’s share of teachers’ union campaign cash.

Who loses?

These 1,714 poor, mainly black, students who have escaped one of America’s most pitiful school systems.

Who wins?

The teachers unions, who hate school choice, hate vouchers, and don’t give a damn about school kids when they threaten union pay, benefits, and control of classrooms.

Then again, why should Democrats care about disadvantaged black children trying to learn and improve themselves? As the late Albert Shanker, former American Federation of Teachers president, once said: “When school children start paying union dues, that’s when I’ll start representing the interests of school children.”


That needs to be stated again.

When school children start paying union dues, that's when I'll start representing the interests of school children.