The president vetoed a critical education spending bill yesterday, saying it was full of pork and lawmakers are “acting like a teenager with a new credit card.� It has become more and more clear, from his veto and comments like this, that the president is completely out of touch with the millions of students, parents and educators that would be deeply impacted by his attacks on public education.

The president wants to eliminate 45 federal education programs. And the programs that aren’t abolished would be severely cut: the early childhood education program Head Start would be reduced by $250 million, and $800 million would be slashed from special education for children with disabilities. To compare critical programs like this to frivolous teenage spending is an insult to students and educators.

The president’s proposed budget is $4.5 billion less than what a strong bipartisan majority in Congress has deemed necessary to invest in public schools. Members of Congress have been able to move beyond politics and work across party lines to maintain vital domestic programs. It’s shameful that the president isn’t willing to work with them.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 14th, 2007 at 12:28 pm and is filed under Economy/Budget, Politics .