Gray, Brown Differ on School Vouchers

... So far, all is hunky-dory in mayor-council political relations -- including their joint support for a potential new council member. But now, thanks to House Speaker John Boehner, there is clear daylight between Brown and Gray on a hot-button issue: school vouchers.

Brown is on the record for them. In 2009, he joined six of his colleagues in signing a letter to President Obama and Congressional leaders asking them to reauthorize and fund the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program. That letter went unheeded, and the program hasn't taken new students since 2008.

Gray is on the record against them. He sees the federally funded program as another example of unwarranted congressional experimentation with the District, saying in a statement last night that it was an example of "decisions that should be made by the residents of the District of Columbia." (How this principle applies to the charter school system, which congressional Republicans authorized in 1998 and Gray now adores, is another question.)

Now Boehner, who co-authored the original voucher law, is set to introduce a bill that would restart the program, and he sees vouchers as a winning issue for a caucus looking to appear bipartisan. That means there will be hearings with lots of GOP members righteously wanting to know why the program was canceled.

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http://voices.washingtonpost.com/debonis/2011/01/gray_brown_ differ_on_school_vo.html

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