Obama Dubs No Child Left Behind an Empty Political Slogan

During July, the press will focus on the shockingly violent Iraq War, and on the president's crumbling support among Congressional Republicans facing reelection in 2008.

Until the August 3 start of its month-long summer break, Congress will again noisily debate the Iraq War... but little will be accomplished toward withdrawing U.S. troops between now and September.

While obsessing about Iraq, the press may miss the most important legislative story of summer 2007: pending reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which expires at the end of September 2007. If not passed by Congress and signed by the president before then, NCLB and its onerous testing requirements will be history.

Where NCLB Stands Today
Education Secretary Margaret Spellings, a Bush family pal and political ally from Texas, introduced the Bush administration's NCLB reauthorization package months ago. And in mid-June, Ms. Spellings released an exquisitely timed report that illustrated the need for the president's NCLB reforms such as federally funded vouchers for private schools, including religious schools.

The president's NCLB has stalled for months in Sen. Ted Kennedy's Education Committee with nary of word of its fate... until today. Reports D.C. education journalist Alexander Russo today at EdWeek.org:,

"I'm told, if Hill staff finally release the bill language that they've been working on feverishly with hopes of -- could this really happen? -- marking up a bill before August recess? It doesn't seem possible, but who knows.

"Congress Now says 'As for No Child Left Behind, a bipartisan group of House lawmakers is making a push to mark up its reauthorization before the August recess, with the hope of reauthorizing President Bush's landmark education reforms before they expire at the end of September. Staff from both parties are negotiating the final details of the bill's legislative language, which will likely be released within the week as a precursor to a markup.'

"Yikes. I'm excited. I'm scared. I'm skeptical."

Most teachers and parents admire the democratic ideals behind NCLB, but are understandably irked by its clumsy implementation, poorly designed testing system, and especially by its excessive bureaucratic requirements.

Many Senate Democrats, including Ted Kennedy and Hillary Clinton, enthusiastically support the basics of NCLB, but are advocating for major program and testing changes. And some Senate Republicans reject NCLB altogether as unwarranted meddling in state and local matters.

Obama's Startling Plan for U.S. Schools
Speaking to the National Education Association on July 5, 2007, Sen. Barack Obama surprised the education community by blasting NCLB for its widespread lack of success:

"For too long, our politics has been stuck in a cycle where we praise our educators in speeches and photo-ops, but then abandon them when it comes time to offer the resources and the support you need to do your jobs.

"There's no better example of this neglect than the law that has become one of the emptiest slogans in the history of politics - No Child Left Behind."

While it's unclear whether or not Obama supports massive tinkering to correct the ills of NCLB, he plans to soon propose major new legisation to "invest billions of new dollars into the teaching profession and recruit an army of well-trained, well-qualified teachers who are willing to stand at the front of any classroom and give every student the chance to succeed."

The Wall Street Journal today slammed Obama's NEA speech as "cynical" because the senator "trashed testing" and offered "an overflowing gift basket to the teachers unions." The WSJ also voiced irritation that Sen. Obama wants to fix and improve "our schools instead of abandoning them and passing out vouchers."

I find Sen. Obama's plan to bolster America's teachers to be brilliantly progressive and brimming with honesty and much-needed fresh thinking on the topic.

As the vital issue of No Child Left Behind reauthorization heats up, take a few moments to read Sen. Obama's impressively smart plan to reward and support teachers.

(Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Related Reading
Pros & Cons of the No Child Left Behind Act
Bush Uses Smear & Fear Tactics to Push Education Agenda
EdWeek.org, July 9, 2007: ... Or They Could Introduce NCLB Reauthorization Language