by Mark Silva
Sometimes, it doesn't take long for a party to disavow the gains of its own leaders. And sometimes, candidates regret their own votes.
That could be the case, it appears, with the No Child Left Behind Act, the law which President Bush won during his first year in office. The law, holding public schools accountable for the performance of their students, has demanded national achievement testing and then ramifications for schools failing to make "adequate yearly progress.''
It was the cornerstone of Bush's 2000 presidential campaign, in which he complained that too many children fall victim to "the soft bigotry of low expectations'' and called on educators to hold themselves accountable for their students' performance. But schoolteachers nationwide have complained that the law has come with little federal aid to support improvements necessary and has forced them to "teach to the test.''
Today, Fred Thompson, the former senator from Tennessee and television and film star who has entered the campaign for the Republican Party presidential nomination in 2008, suggested that it's time to leave No Child Left Behind behind. Thompson, campaignining in Florida -- where the president's brother, former Gov. Jeb Bush, also had made public school funding contingent on public school performance -- suggested that the federal government has gotten too involved.
And there is a certain irony in his position. As a senator, in 2001, Thompson voted for the president's No Child Left Behind Act -- as did most senators on both sides of the aisle.
Campaigning in the Republican stronghold of Jacksonville at the start of a Florida campaign kick-off bus tour, Thompson said the president's signature education program isn't working and promised that, as president, he would provide federal school funding with fewer strings attached.
"We've been spending increasing amounts of federal money for decades, with increasing rules, increasing mandates, increasing regulations," Thompson said. "It's not working."
He added that there are problems with the program itself.
"No Child Left Behind — good concept, I'm all for testing — but it seems like now some of these states are teaching to the test and kind of making it so that everybody does well on the test — you can't really tell that everybody's doing that well. And it's not objective," Thompson said. Instead, he said, the federal government should be providing block grants as long as states set up objective testing programs.
Thompson said his message to the states would be: "We expect you to get objective testing done and publicize those tests for the local parents and for the local citizens and suffer the political ramifications locally if things don't work out right."
The former star of NBC's "Law & Order" was responding to a question as he began a three-day bus tour of Florida, his first visit to the state since announcing his candidacy last week.
A woman asked what he would do for education. He told her decisions on how schools are run should be made by local and state decisions, not dictated out of Washington.
"It's your responsibility," he said. "If you don't like what's going on, don't get in your car and drive by your school board and maybe drive by the capitol and get on an airplane and fly to Washington and say, 'I don't like the way the school down the street is being run."'
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
• 
• 
• 
Comments
"...and called on educators to hold themselves accountable for their students' performance."
Now, if we can just get "No President Left Behind" passed so that we can hold somebody accountable for a president's performance.
Elections just aren't working.
Posted by: Bud McFarlin | September 13, 2007 2:53 PM
Who ever wins the next Prez election is probably going to be a one termer (08 Dems are going to score a huge majority in Congress to offset a possible knuckledragging Republican Prez anyway) because if they are going to fix all of W's f-ups they're going to have to make some very unpopular decisions.
The problem I have with Republicant Party drones like Fredrick of Hollywood is that they wouldn't make these tough decisions (Iraq) and they would "stay the course" with most of the stupid crap that W. has already done.
The Bush family and the Cheney family are helping to get together campaign funding for Grandpa Fred......enough said.
Posted by: John E | September 13, 2007 2:53 PM
Here we go again,Republics talking about education.Why don't they just admit,they want to "Privatize" education so their friends @ Haliburton can make a ton of money.
They "Privatized" airport security and look how well that worked out.They "Privatized" many of the military functions to their friends and look how well that worked out.
Water from the Euphrates anyone????
Posted by: Raving Loon | September 13, 2007 3:10 PM
There will be no equality in our country until schools are equally funded. It's like the great line from the film the "The Right Stuff". "No bucks, no Buck Rogers".
Poor students, whether innercity or rural, cannot compete in society unless their education is up to par with their wealthy neighbors.
The children of Lawndale, Gresham and Pullman, deserve and are entitled to the same quality of education provided in Winnetka, Wilmette and Glenview.
While the funding must be spent wisely, money is still the key. Not only does it allow the building of state of the art facilities, but it is also key to the recruitment of the best and brightest teachers.
Better education means less crime, less drugs, less gangs.
Too bad we've wasted $600 billion + on a phony war in Iraq.
Imagine how that could have helped here at home.
Posted by: Steve34 | September 13, 2007 3:17 PM
Thompson voted for the NCLB law (as did Hillary Clinton), and still supports the concept behind the law. But, as he made clear in his speech, he didn't anticipate how states and educators would try and game the system.
Circumstances having changed, it makes sense to change the law. Sounds like common sense to me.
Posted by: Bruce | September 13, 2007 3:26 PM
Perhaps we should leave Thompson behind.
*Yawn*
Posted by: Marko | September 13, 2007 3:37 PM
By the way Bruce, wasn't Howard Dean up in the polls early?
Posted by: Marko | September 13, 2007 3:55 PM
..."By the way Bruce, wasn't Howard Dean up in the polls early?"...
...yep, he sure was...
...keep them poll results coming in Bruce...we can always use a good laugh...and remember how Dewey Beat Truman (wasn't that the Chicago Libtune who wrote that)...damn lefties...
Posted by: The Original BZ | September 13, 2007 5:39 PM
thompson cleverness he cant foll me- hes wise and clver- good only in talking. hes old/sick and not very good. no one knows his real attittude i write them donw here;
hes; ANXIOUS/CARELESS/CONRADICTPRY/DISOBEDIENT/HARD-NOSED/HOT TEMPERED/IMPATIENT/INSECURE/
IRRESPONSIBLE/MOODY/OPPORTUNISTIC/SELF-SERVING/SHOE-OFF/SUPERFICIAL/UNSTABLE.
HIS POSITIVE TRAITS; ARE;
CHARMING/CHEERFUL/INTHUSIASTIC/LOGICAL/PERSUASIVE/SOCIABLE/TALENTED.(horse birthyear sogn) born 1942) a traits phychic reader comment.
rudy guiliane birthyear traits are;
arrogant/cunning/deceitful/
fickle/immature/manipulative/restless/scheming/secretive/sel-fish/unfaithful/unpredictable.
his positive traits are;
candid/charming/gregarious/intelegent/wise/sociable.
hillary clinton traits;oct.26 born-1947
her traits are;
talented/smart/knowledgeable/honest/caring/charitable/forgiving/determined/caring/cheerful/obliging/outgoing/self-sacrificing/sensible/amazing/afectionate.
her neg.traits are;hesitant/
Posted by: laura | September 13, 2007 6:09 PM
There will be no equality in our country until schools are equally funded. It's like the great line from the film the "The Right Stuff". "No bucks, no Buck Rogers".
I must say schools spend more money on paper and other things to comply with all of the NCLB "accountability" that would be better used for classroom supplies and infrastructure. If they want us to dot all the i's and cross all the t's they need to fund it!
Posted by: lochnessmonster | September 13, 2007 6:36 PM
Why is the federal gov't involved in the funding of local public education.
Leave this to the state and locals.
Posted by: Terry | September 13, 2007 6:54 PM
I think I found a Republican candidate I can vote for...
Thompson told a group of South Carolina Republicans that he’s right with God, but doesn’t attend church regularly, except when he visits his mother.
Finally, a candidate, any candidate that thinks religion is less important than governing. And is willing to say so in public.
Posted by: snitramc | September 13, 2007 7:24 PM
Fred is being consistent in his federalist philosophy. He believes that we need to downsize the Federal government and get it out of any responsibilities that the Constitution does not specifically give it. The framers' idea and original intent was that state governments would be responsible for everything not clearly identified as federal. That makes perfect sense to me. Less federal government is more.
Posted by: Bob Barney | September 14, 2007 1:10 AM
"Imagine how that could have helped here at home."
Like we haven't increased education spending exponentially over the decades already...
A liberal's position always starts with "just send more money, we'll worry about results later".
Posted by: anti-idiot | September 14, 2007 7:59 PM
I work in a public school and I can tell you that the no child left behind act does not work! Our education cuts were so great this year that we lost many valuable employees. Our teachers are now given one...ONE ream of paper per month. We are going on our third week of school and no one has supplies yet. Our teachers must teach to the test and our children are told that if they don't think they will do well on the test, don't come to school. An absence doesn't count against scores that are submitted to the federal government. Meanwhile, we still have fifth grade students that can not read or write. They are pushed through anyway. Why? Because no child is left behind. It's a joke!
Posted by: Noel | September 15, 2007 10:40 PM
Noel,
If public education would have produced results over the past few decades, you wouldn't have needed this oversight law called No-Child Left behind. As far as supplies, I'm sure if the principal/board looks at re-arraning their spending prioities, the can find the money for a few more reams of paper.
The schools had fifth-grade students that couldn't read or write well before NCLB, so don't make that the NEA bogeyman.
Your school lost many valuable employees due to cuts? Why didn't the school cut some of the "not-so-valuable" employees?
You just stated everything that is wrong with public education and why it needs an overhaul. Your statement is one of the best reason for vouchers that I have read
Posted by: Terry | September 16, 2007 11:54 AM
I dont know about this education thing, but i is voting for fred cuase he is a great actor. I liked his role on law and order.
Posted by: fred thompson | September 29, 2007 6:38 PM
Just as I was reading this post I heard on the news he steped down
Posted by: Tom Johnson | January 22, 2008 4:44 PM