A reader complains that I unfairly mailgned Jim Himes for voting to shut down charter schools in D.C. when in fact, the reader says, he never did. Well perhaps I’m guilty of shorthand. What Himes did vote for was the 2009 Omnibus Spending Bill which contained a provision, slipped in at the behest of the NEA, to end the school voucher pilot program which awarded a few thousand lucky students $7,500 with which to pay for an education at a school free from the horrors of the D.C. union-run schools. The vote is here. The Senate also voted to kill this threat to unions and not surprisingly, Dodd voted to kill it, Lieberman voted to keep it alive. That’s why this is Lieberman’s last term, of course.
Why is this hypocrisy of the worst order? Because no one in Washington with a choice sends their kids to the public schools there. Not Obama, not Jim Himes. But they will deny the same choice to poor students so as to curry favor with the NEA. Trading kids’ lives for votes is despicable, to me. Not to Himes, or Dodd.
For What It's Worth 
Vouchers are not charter schools; they in fact bear no relation to charter schools, which are public schools that are given permission to operate outside of a school district’s prevailing guidelines and regulations.
Many Democrats support charter schools. Jim Himes is actually one of those Democrats, and you can read that for yourself in this article from the Connecticut Post, where Himes goes on record in favor of charters.
What public education advocates don’t support are voucher programs that are championed by conservatives who don’t believe in public education and want to drain valuable dollars from our public schools. Furthermore, far from being a lifeline for DC public school kids, the voucher program wasn’t working.
First you tell readers that Himes went to Lawrenceville (false), then you write that he is against charter schools (false). It seems you’ll never bother to write the truth about Himes.
uh huh
No, you’re right, that’s a better argument.
It’s unfair to blame Himes for the content of the bill. He never had time to read it. Unlike John Conyers, Himes is not honest enough to admit it.
I ask Anon to ask the kids in DC who are being forced to return to the DC public schools whether the voucher program was working. I wonder if Anon would like his or her children forced into the failing system in DC. When faced with a choice between children and unions, this congress has sided with unions.
Anonymous,
The Department of Education doesn’t seem to fully agree with you that the DC “voucher program wasnt working.” Here is a link to a March 2009 DOE report which found that the program improved reading achievement and had a positive impact on parent satisfaction and perceptions of school safety.
Click to access 20094050.pdf
Also, if Himes is a supporter of charter schools, why not send his kids to a DC charter school?
Jim Himes’ term started 1/09 which is smack-dab in the middle of the academic year for his two daughters at the CosCob school. Was he supposed to pull them out of school, transfer them down to DC for what could possibly be only one full academic year only to risk having to yank them out of school and replant them mid-term two years later?
and then would his constituents be unhappy that he no longer had roots in the community?
I’ll et you year’s worth of lunch money that next September sees the kids still here in Cos Cob or a private school in Washington.
Jim “there are no earmarks in the stimulus bill” Himes?
Jim “crap and tax” Himes?
Jim “i’ll sell out my neighbors, their children, and my colleagues of 12 years, so i can keep my nose pressed against Nancy Pelosi’s backside” Himes?
Jim ACORN Himes?
Jim “i want the government to control your children’s education” Himes?
But hey, he allegedly did not do a PG year at Lawrenceville.
Chris, you don’t know what you are talking about. Vouchers are indeed very different than charter schools, so get your facts straight. Remember, Wikipedia. Or Google. Instead of random unfounded claims. And I happen to know the head of a charter school in DC. Do you know anyone there who works in the education system, or do you just like lobbing in random, ignorant thoughts from afar?
There is absolutely nothing wrong with keeping his kids in the Greenwich schools — that’s a ridiculous criticism. I’ll bet you a year’s worth of lunch money that he feeds and clothes his kids as well. What a villain!
This is your Limbaugh side spouting nonsense. Everyone really appreciates your thoughts about someone else’s children. Keep it up.