October 13, 2003
Education Funding Failure Dooms Bush in '04
by Scott Ott
Source: U.S. Department of Education
Of course, things were much better for education when President Clinton had a Democrat majority in Congress.
DOE Funding for Elementary and Secondary Education
(dollars in billions)
Compared with the last full year of the Clinton administration, in three years under Mr. Bush the DOE budget for elementary and secondary education has increased a mere $12.6 billion. However, during the eight boom years for education (1993-2000), Mr. Clinton succeeded in boosting that part of the DOE appropriation by a whopping $9.2 billion.
"Bush is killing education as we know it," said Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-MA. "We must fund public schooling or our kids will get even stupider and more of them will vote Republican. It's a vicious downward vortex of failure."
A spokesman for the National Education Association, the largest teacher's union, said schools are also being ruined by the administration's focus on achievement and accountability.
"When education was great in this country, we weren't obsessed with the growing failure rates, dropouts and illiteracy," said the unnamed NEA official. "They were the halcyon days of public schooling when everyone could say 'Other schools are in trouble, but my school is okay'. There were no annoying statistics to prove otherwise. Bush has made us feel bad about schools, and when people feel bad they vote Democrat." Donate | More Satire | Printer-Friendly |
by Scott Ott
(2003-10-13) -- Unless President George Bush can reverse the tide, a Democrat will likely occupy the White House in 2005 because of that party's strong commitment to education.
Polls show that Americans believe Democrats care more about education than Republicans do. As one Congressional Democrat put it, "The President's 'No Child Left Behind' program has left the Department of Education (DOE) gasping for funding."
The table below demonstrates the current crisis in funding for elementary and secondary education, and contrasts the Clinton and Bush years.
DOE Funding for Elementary and Secondary Education
(dollars in billions)
| Year | '96 | '97 | '98 | '99 | '00 | '01 | '02 | '03 |
| Amount | $14.6 | $16.8 | $18.5 | $21.4 | $23.1 | $27.9 | $32.7 | $35.7 | Increase | ($.2) | $2.2 | $1.7 | $2.9 | $1.7 | $4.8 | $4.8 | $3.0 | Percent | -1% | +15% | +10% | +15% | +7% | +20% | +17% | +9% |
Source: U.S. Department of Education
Of course, things were much better for education when President Clinton had a Democrat majority in Congress.
DOE Funding for Elementary and Secondary Education
(dollars in billions)
| Year | '93 | '94 | '95 | '96 |
| Amount | $13.8 | $14.4 | $14.8 | $14.6 |
| Increase | ($0.1) | $0.6 | $0.4 | ($0.2) |
| Percent | -.7% | +4.3% | +2.7% | -1.3% |
Compared with the last full year of the Clinton administration, in three years under Mr. Bush the DOE budget for elementary and secondary education has increased a mere $12.6 billion. However, during the eight boom years for education (1993-2000), Mr. Clinton succeeded in boosting that part of the DOE appropriation by a whopping $9.2 billion.
"Bush is killing education as we know it," said Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-MA. "We must fund public schooling or our kids will get even stupider and more of them will vote Republican. It's a vicious downward vortex of failure."
A spokesman for the National Education Association, the largest teacher's union, said schools are also being ruined by the administration's focus on achievement and accountability.
"When education was great in this country, we weren't obsessed with the growing failure rates, dropouts and illiteracy," said the unnamed NEA official. "They were the halcyon days of public schooling when everyone could say 'Other schools are in trouble, but my school is okay'. There were no annoying statistics to prove otherwise. Bush has made us feel bad about schools, and when people feel bad they vote Democrat." Donate | More Satire | Printer-Friendly |
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