DOA: School Vouchers

Sorry -- and not just to you, dear reader, but to me -- about the string of shortish posts. I've unexpectedly gotten what will either prove to be a great opportunity or merely an excruciating writing exercise. Will fill you in when I know which it is.

Anyway, either the Texas legislature has been particularly vindictive against the cause of freedom this year or I am merely much more hip to its usual machinations than I used to be. Neither prospect offers me any comfort. Today, I learned via the Houston Chronicle of its latest assault on individual rights. An already feeble attempt to start the ball rolling on educational reform, via school vouchers, was ignominiously castrated and then killed on the floor of the Texas House today.

A plan to make Texas one of the first states with a large-scale voucher program died Monday night after a raucous debate and a series of close votes in the House.

After the bill was gutted to make vouchers available only for public and not private schools, Speaker Tom Craddick sustained a parliamentary challenge that killed the issue for this session.

"I woke up this morning thinking this may be the day we made history in Texas," said Rep. Kent Grusendorf, sponsor of the proposal. "I'm disappointed."

It was the first time in eight years that the House debated the volatile issue of giving students public funding to attend private and parochial schools. In 1997, the effort failed on a tie vote and Monday's debate delivered similar drama.

As I keep saying, "Whew! Good thing the Republicans are in charge!"

Just to recap a few previously-blogged highlights....

A bill was introduced this session to impose what would be, in effect, an income tax on Texans. This is something the Democrats failed to do even with 120 consecutive years of power! (Hmmm! I'd better keep tabs on this one....)

Rep. Al Edwards, D-Houston (who, sadly, is my representative, as I recently learned), has been trying to use government force to impose Christian mores on cheerleading squads.

Most recently, the legislature has okayed a popular vote to amend the state constitution to prohibit gay marriages and civil unions.

So, in recognition that Texans come from all walks of life, the legislature has something to offer for everyone this year. (Wasn't it Mike Royko who said something like, "Please don't help me no more?" Whatever it was and whoever said it, that's all I ask of the boys in Austin.)

-- CAV