Frank Riggs: “I rise today to focus on a very serious debate that has been going on back here in Washington over the last several…”

“I rise today to focus on a very serious debate that has been going on back here in Washington over the last several weeks. In fact, it is a debate that reminds me, the longer I serve in Congress, the more convinced I become that Washington just does not get it. Mr. Speaker, I am referring to the fact that the District of Columbia appropriations spending bill is now held up in the other body under the threat of a filibuster, and for one simple reason. That is because Senate Democrats are opposed to the notion of giving low-income students, those students who come from low-income families here in the District of Columbia, educational choice. The House version of the District of Columbia appropriations bill contains language that appropriates funds for a demonstration program, the idea being to grant scholarships or educational vouchers to these particular students. Bear in mind a couple of facts: One, the District of Columbia schools have the worst performance record of any inner-city school district in the country in terms of test scores and graduation rate. Only 56 percent of the students in the District of Columbia public schools graduate from those particular schools.”