60 Days: Dole votes against funding our schools

DAY 60

Children all across North Carolina are getting back into the swing of things for a new school year. New pencils, fresh notebooks, shiny binders – but where will students come up with the billions of dollars necessary to fully fund No Child Left Behind? Elizabeth Dole certainly won’t help. Dole voted five times against funding the education program that she described in 2004 as “bold and visionary,” and then had the audacity to assert in 2008 that she will only support the program if changes are made. When report cards come out this year, Dole’s record on education just won’t make the grade.

DOLE IS TRYING TO RUN AWAY FROM PREVIOUS SUPPORT OF NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND

2004: NCLB Is “So Bold And Visionary.” In an op-ed in March 2004, Dole wrote, “NCLB raises academic standards, holds schools accountable for performance, requires that every child learn to read, works to ensure that there is a quality teacher in every classroom, and provides more choices and flexibility for parents. Accountability is the cornerstone of what makes NCLB so bold and visionary.” [Charlotte Observer, 3/12/04]

2008: Will Only Support No Child Left Behind If Changes Are Made. During the North Carolina Bar Association candidate forum, Elizabeth Dole said, “Well, obviously, the No Child Left Behind has problems.” Furthermore, she said she would support reauthorization of No Child Left Behind, but only if changes were made that would hold principals and administrators “to a higher standard” and avoid schools “teaching to the test.” [Raleigh News and Observer, 6/21/08; NC Bar Association Senate Candidate Forum Transcript, 6/21/08]

DOLE IS OPPOSED TO FULLY FUNDING NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND, HAS VOTED AGAINST FUNDING FOR NCLB FIVE TIMES

Dole Thought NCLB Did Not Need To Be Fully Funded. In January 2004, Dole disagreed with a report that stated North Carolina would be under-funded by $500 million in the 2004 budget. Dole said, “It is clear that the issue for No Child Left Behind is not the lack of available money.” [Durham Herald-Sun, 01/15/04]

Dole: Lack Of NCLB Funding Is A “Myth.” In March 2004, Dole wrote an op-ed about NCLB. Dole wrote, “It is important to dispel the myth that NCLB is underfunded. Nothing could be further from the truth. America’s schools are experiencing record levels of federal funding.” [Charlotte Observer, 03/12/04]

Bush: “Only A Liberal” Would Say NCLB Is Under-Funded. During a presidential debate between George Bush and John Kerry in October 2004, Bush defended the funding levels for NCLB, saying “only a liberal from Massachusetts would say that a 49 percent increase in funding for education is not enough.” [New York Times, Presidential Debate Transcript, 10/13/04]

National Education Association: NCLB Under-Funded By $40 Billion. In January 2006, the president of the National Education Association, Reg Weaver, said, “No Child Left Behind has been under-funded by $40 billion over the past five years, including $1 billion in cuts by Congress in December” of 2005. [NEA Press Release, 1/31/06]

McCain Senior Advisor On NCLB: We Need To “Fully Fund It.” On Meet the Press, Carly Fiorina, a senior advisor to Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign, said on the subject of No Child Left Behind that “We need to learn the lessons, fix the problems, and fully fund it.” [Meet the Press Transcript, 7/13/08]

In 2005, Dole Voted Against $5 Billion Increase In NCLB Funding. In October 2005, Dole voted against an amendment that would have increased NCLB Title I funding by $5 billion during fiscal year 2006. The underlying bill appropriated $12.8 billion for Title I in 2006, about $10 billion less than Congress authorized. [Vote 269, 10/26/05]

In 2004, Dole Opposed $8.6 Billion In Education Funding Increases To Fully Fund NCLB. In 2004, Dole voted against a proposal that would have created a reserve fund to allow for an increase of up to $8.6 billion in education programs. It also increased the amount dedicated for deficit reduction by $8.6 billion. The spending would have been offset by revenue increases. [Vote 35, 3/10/04]

In 2003, Dole Voted To Implement NCLB Without Full Title I Funding. On September 10, 2003, Dole voted against an amendment that would have prohibited the implementation of the “NCLB Act” if the amount appropriated for Title I in the underlying Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill was less than $18.5 billion—the amount authorized by the NCLB Act. The amendment was rejected 28-67. [Vote 342, 9/10/03]

Dole Opposed $6.2 Billion For Title I Programs To Fully Fund NCLB. In September 2003, Dole voted against an amendment that would have provided an additional $6.2 billion for Title I programs. The substitute amendment would have provided the funding as part of a $472.2 billion package in fiscal 2004 for the departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education and related agencies. [Vote 330, 9/9/03]

Dole Voted Against $6 Billion In Education Funding To Fully Fund NCLB. Dole voted against an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2003 Omnibus Appropriations Bill that would have provided $6 billion to help fully fund NCLB. [Vote 5, 1/16/03]

---Disclosure: I am Kay Hagan's Online Communications Director---