Political Quotes

“I want to thank all of my colleagues for their hard work that has brought us to this point on the bipartisan Every Child Achieves Act. My friend and colleague from Tennessee, Chairman Alexander, and my great colleague, Ranking Member Murray, of the HELP Committee have worked tirelessly to bring this bill to the floor. I salute them for finding many points of agreement that unite us in a very bipartisan way in forming our approach to high-stakes testing--an issue that has bedeviled this body and our Nation for many years--and requiring increased data collection and reporting, expanding access to early childhood education, increases in authorization of funding, and finally, after 13 years, reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. This bill is by no means perfect. Few measures approved by the Congress are. We work to come as close to perfection as possible. But, as the saying goes, we cannot let the perfect be the enemy of the good. This bill is a good bill. I personally would like to see some of the accountability provisions of the bill strengthened, ensuring that schools have real incentives to make reform. I have some very serious qualms about a proposal that would change the formula for allocating title I funding in a way that would take funding away from certain districts in Connecticut and other States that serve low-income children. I am hoping that three of the amendments I have written will make this legislation stronger.…”