The leader of Pastors for Texas Children, Charles Foster Johnson, spoke in Longview, Texas, where he told a crowd of educators and local officials that the State Senate doesn’t care about public schools. Led by the obstinate, narrow-minded Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the State Senate wants vouchers. It opposes funding public schools, attended by some 90% of the children in Texas, unless he gets a voucher bill. No vouchers, no funding.
Pastor Johnson told his audience that the Texas House was reasonable and did its best, but there is no getting any funding bill passed by the State Senate.
He told the truth. The State Senate doesn’t care about public schools.
Pastor Johnson said it is time to elect legislators who care about the public schools and the children who attend them: their constituents.
“The Texas Senate’s original budget was this,” Johnson said, making an “O” with his right hand. “Zero. And ultimately, fast forward to the end of the special session. Basically the Senate said if you’re not going to give us vouchers, we’re not going to give you funding. In other words, we’re going to starve your schools until you cave in and let us privatize them. Let us make money off your children. Let our donors — out-of-state donors — make money off your Longview kids, and the House said no, and that’s the stalemate.”
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Maybe it’s time for the people to sue the legislature for its failure to do its duty to fund common schools. Too many complicit legislators are holding state purse strings hostage,
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Indeed, retired teacher. It’s totally GROSS. Using more words to express my disgust would be swear ones.
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We need to change state laws so that any privatization measures must be put to a public vote. It is the only way to ensure democratic process in an oligarchy. Governors and legislatures can be bought for campaign donations, and the level of wheeling, dealing and extortion is out of control. This is not the so called “free market,” it is a rigged pay to play system that circumvents the will of the people.
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True, the will of the people is being disregarded, in Texas and many other states. Some people express hopelessness but in the end if the people decide to speak then something will happen. Your suggestion of a public vote would help and perhaps it should be suggested more widely.
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ABSOLUTELY TRUE!
But the voters don’t know this, and the media doesn’t report it. Beacause they are now all owned by the same big money interests.
So they keep electing the same representatives.
Is there a solution?
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There is a solution:
VOTE
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It bears repeating: My suggestion is to find & support campaign reform legislation– via local candidates & larger online movements. Until we cut off the fire hose of corporate $ that underwrites every election from President down to school board candidate, the individual voter hasn’t got a shot at representation of his interests.
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here’s my suggestion..the 1.5 million participants in the Teacher Retirement System show up to the polls and block vote Dan Patrick and like minded senators out of office in 2018 and replace them with “public education friendly” candidates! Join us on Facebook @ Texans For Public Education https://www.facebook.com/groups/TexansforPublicEd/
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Still waiting to find public officeholders losing their position due to positions on education policy. Any possibility here with Texas?
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I grew up in Longview. Wow, amazing to see in your blog, Diane. Thank you for sharing!
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I had cousins in Kilgore and Longview and Wharton.
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It’s obvious that the Texas Senate belongs to the Koch brothers and/or the Waltons. It’s not going to be easy to outspend them during elections. To beat them will mean lots of grass roots feet on the ground going door to door.
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I have not seen feet on the ground around my area for more than a decade.
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