Dan Burton: “I find it disheartening that President Clinton, and others opposing this legislation, would rather protect a public…”

“I find it disheartening that President Clinton, and others opposing this legislation, would rather protect a public education system that is failing to educate the District's children, than do what is best for the families of our nation's capitol. I read Monday in Congressional Quarterly's Daily Monitor that one of the bill's opponents has called the voucher plan, quote, ``an election- year charade'' which is, quote, ``irrelevant * * * to the pressing needs of District schoolkids.'' Let me remind my colleagues that this proposal was introduced in a non-election year (last June) as a bi-partisan, bi-cameral bill. This is not an election year ``charade'', and it is not a Republican or conservative issue. If it were, we would not have the support of leading liberals in the Democratic party such as Senators Joseph Lieberman, Mary Landrieu, Bob Kerrey, and former Representative Floyd Flake. That this legislation is ``irrelevant'' to the pressing needs of District schoolkids could not be further from reality. It is because the ``pressing'' needs of District schoolkids have continued to go ill- addressed, and the city's children continue to fall behind, that the need for this legislation is so desperately needed now.”