Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume to make a few comments. Mr. Speaker, we have heard about things embedded in this legislation. I want to reiterate this is a bill that says that parents have the right to know what their children are being taught, parents have the right to be heard, parents have the right to see the school budget and spending, parents have the right to protect their child's privacy, and parents have a right to keep their children safe. We have also heard our colleagues talk about how well school boards work, and for large swaths of the country, I am sure that is true. Just because things work well in some places does not mean they work well in all places. Tell that to Mr. Scott Smith who was arrested at a school board meeting in Loudoun County, Virginia, when he questioned whether the school might be trying to cover up his daughter's sexual assault by a gender fluid student. We have heard that this bill pits parents against teachers and against each other. We have heard a lot of those types of comments. The very fact that they characterize this bill as pitting someone against another when I have just stated the facts of what is in the bill should be a red flag. I sat through a 16-hour markup until the early hours of 2:30 or 3 a.m. in this morning. We did hear dozens of amendments, but what I heard were dozens of chances to empower bureaucrats over empowering parents. Republicans are proud to stand up for parents on behalf of students.…”