Evan Bayh: “Mr. President, for more than 100 years, our Republic has been dedicated to the proposition that every child growing up…”

“Mr. President, for more than 100 years, our Republic has been dedicated to the proposition that every child growing up in our country--every child, not just a few, not just the privileged and the elite--should have access to a quality public education. In the 1960s, there was a growing recognition, particularly for those children in our country who are less fortunate, that the dream of a good education was a promise unfulfilled, and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act was born. We gather here today to say that for too many of our young people the dream of a good education is still a promise unfulfilled, the status quo is not good enough, that we must do better, that we must have a significant rethinking and rededication to the principle that a good education is essential for opportunity and for every child growing up in our country. That is what the Graham amendment is really all about.”