Hey politicians, leave the kids alone
By: North County Times - Editorial | ∞
Our View: Shame on you, Jack O'Connell. O'Connell, the chief educator in California, delivered a lesson in hyperbole and political cynicism Tuesday to a class of fifth-graders in National City. His message: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's budget "fails our students and starves our schools."
In reality, the governor's budget proposal would raise K-12 funding by $1.8 billion next year, boosting total spending to more than $10,000 per pupil. Like many educators, O'Connell wants more.
O'Connell, a prominent Democrat who may run to replace the Republican governor in 2006, certainly has a right to his opinion.
But dragging a roomful of fifth-graders into his political tussle is just wrong. O'Connell should save it for parents and newspaper reporters, who are better equipped to parse the exaggerations of politicians.
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