Democrats working to doom school vouchers in D.C.

Article: Will Obama Stand Up for These Kids? probably requires a subscription to WSJ.

The Wall Street Journal had an article today about two students who attend the Washington D.C. school that President Obama's daughters now attend. These two students and others attend this school with school vouchers granted to inner city kids from low income families. These kids otherwise would not be able to attend this school.

The Democrats have added language to a bill to allow this voucher program to die in 2010. At that point these two students will no longer be able to attend this good school but must return to their failing local public school which has low graduation rates, metal detectors at the doors, and security guards.

The Democratic party supports the teacher unions in their campaign to stamp out school vouchers. School vouchers give parents a choice. Teacher unions do not want this choice. The Democratic leaders send their kids to private schools and deny that right to poor people condeming them to failing schools and continued poverty.

Interestingly, President Obama has an awkward position on school reform. His party supports the public school status quo, but he espouses change. Let me end with a quote.

"The biggest source of resistance [to reform]," he said, "was rarely talked about . . . namely, the uncomfortable fact that every one of our churches was filled with teachers, principals, and district superintendents. Few of these educators sent their own children to public schools; they knew too much for that. But they would defend the status quo with the same skill and vigor as their white counterparts of two decades before." -- said by President Obama when he was a community organizer in Chicago.

What will he do before these kids lose this opportunity?