Question: how many political issues would you say pols like Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and Sen. Ted Cruz agree upon? Not many I suspect, but school choice is evidently one of them (via Reason):
As part of School Choice Week students, parents, and politicians attended rallies across the nation and the testimony of the children who spoke at them is deeply moving. In the video above, one college-bound senior explained that without choice -- that is, the opportunity to pick the school that was right for her -- she would not be attending Swarthmore College next fall. Thus it’s a sobering and scary thought that this young woman almost wasn’t able to attend her “dream school” simply because of the circumstances of her birth and the school district she lives in. School choice changed her life forever. And giving more parents more choices about where they send their kids to school can change more lives in the future.
Cruz, for his part, touched on an important point I’ve never really thought about before. Yes, it’s well established that many Democrats are “unalterably opposed” to school choice because the teachers unions they belong to oppose them. But where are the Republicans on this issue? Far too many of them are indeed “apathetic,” as Cruz says. They will gladly criticize President Obama for hours on end. But when it comes to raising awareness about an issue that affects so many families so personally, many of them are still far too silent and indifferent. This must change.
(H/T: Mary Katharine Ham)