Al Franken: “on March 19 of this year, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that Minnesota's tribal school districts were making…”

“on March 19 of this year, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that Minnesota's tribal school districts were making plans to cut the school year short, increase class sizes, and let staff vacancies go unfilled. The White Earth Reservation is planning to consolidate its sixth, seventh, and eighth grades into a single class starting in the fall. This is happening because of the sequester. On April 11, WDAZ, Channel 8 in Grand Forks, reported that special education programs in my State of Minnesota were going to be hit by a $90 million cut. This is particularly painful in the Crookston, MN, school district, where 20 percent of students benefit from special education programming. This is happening because of the sequester. On April 17, Minnesota Public Radio reported that budget cuts were affecting our court system. Across the country, access to public defenders, a constitutionally guaranteed right, is becoming more difficult. This is happening because of the sequester. It is not just happening in Minnesota, it is happening around the country. To take just two examples from the many I could cite from every State in the Nation, on March 13, the AP reported that an Indiana Head Start program was forced to use a random drawing to determine which 36 children would be cut from their program.…”