One of the things that characterizes Democratic politicians is the resorting to “emergency powers” whenever possible to thwart legislation that they do not like or that organizations that send money to their campaigns don’t like.
One of the biggest supporters monetarily for Democrats are the teachers’ unions. In North Carolina Senate Bill 406, also known as “Choose Your School, Choose Your Future,” is an initiative to make opportunity scholarships (also known as “vouchers”) available to families of all income levels. This would allow parents to use public school funds allocated for their children and use it to send them to a private school of their choosing.
Republicans called it a great day for kids. Amy Galey of the NC Senate said, “Constituents continually support increased school choice and more access to educational options for families. Not every school is a good fit for every child, and when there is a disconnect, the parents should have options to be sure that their child is learning and growing appropriately.”
Of course, for Democrats this is a sacrilege that children might not attend a public school. Since the Republicans in the NC legislature have enough votes to override the governor’s veto of such legislation, Democrat Governor, Roy Cooper, announced a state of emergency in public education on Monday in anticipation of such an override of his veto.
“I’m declaring the state of emergency because you need to know what’s happening. If you care about public schools in North Carolina, it’s time to take immediate action and tell them to stop the damage that will set back our schools for a generation.”
Now let’s keep in mind that 4 in 10 fourth graders in NC cannot read at grade level. A generation ago that was not the case. NC public schools are failing the children they are supposed to educate. However, Governor Cooper does not want to change that. He wants to ensure that campaign funding continues to flow in from the teachers’ unions. What Cooper probably fails to realize is that school choice is a serious wedge issue among NC black parents whose kids are trapped in poorly performing schools.
School choice is a way to hold the public education system accountable. Of course, private schools are not directly accountable to the government and this would result in the Left losing a lever over the minds of the children in the state. The Left cannot abide this. The result is the proclamation from Cooper on Monday.
Everywhere there is meaningful choice among education options, the children benefit. The Democrats hate that.
Good!