The two most outspoken conservatives in Texas—Senator Ted Cruz and Governor Greg Abbott—are at odds in two races for the state legislature. Abbott is supporting the Republican incumbents. Cruz is supporting their challengers in the Republican primary.
The two grinches of the right are diverging because of one issue: school choice. Texas is already overrun with charter schools (mostly low-performing), but the legislature has opposed vouchers for private and religious schools for years.
“Sen. Cruz believes that school choice is the most important domestic issue in the country,” Cruz spokesperson Steve Guest said in a statement. “He doesn’t hesitate to endorse and support candidates in primaries that will fight for school choice across Texas.”
Some might think that climate change or the high cost of prescription drugs or high rates of child poverty was “the most important domestic issue in the country,” but not Senator Cruz.
His own children are enrolled at the elite St. John’s School in Houston, where tuition is about $30,000 annually. If Texas were to endorse vouchers, you can be sure that they wouldn’t be large enough for any student to attend St. John’s.
The broad concept of school choice is popular among Texas Republicans. In the March primary, 88% of voters approved of a ballot proposition that asked voters whether they agreed with the statement, “Texas parents and guardians should have the right to select schools, whether public or private, for their children, and the funding should follow the student.”
But the issue divides Republican lawmakers when it comes to school voucher programs, which would let parents use public money for private school education. Rural Republicans are often the most outspoken opponents, voicing concerns that such initiatives would hurt the public schools that are the lifeblood of their tightly knit communities.
The Texas House has long been a firewall against voucher proposals. During the last regular legislative session, the chamber voted 115-29 on a budget amendment to ban school vouchers, with a majority of Republicans siding with Democrats.
Our friends, Pastors for Texas Children, has led the fight against school choice, knowing that the vast majority of students in Texas are enrolled in underfunded public schools. PTC believes in separation of church and state, and they support public schools.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Sounds like school choice is good for the goose, but not the gander. Rural voters perceive the urban school as a negative so creation of a system that ruins urban school is not perceived as bad at all. But start to support a system that might take a good linebacker out of the community school and let him play for Rolling Acres Private Suburban Academy, and you have a mob on your hands.
Someone needs to persuade the Rural voter that he has roughly the same view of his community that urban voters have for theirs. Empathy in politics would go a long way toward making good policy.
Ted Cruz is the slimiest politician of our time.
And that’s saying a lot.
We all saw Cruz back Trump after Trump viciously attacked his wife.
We all saw Cruz head off to Cancun when the people of his state faced losing power during a terrible winter storm.
We all saw Cruz viciously accuse Jackson of promoting CRT and siding with murderers and pedophiles.
And perhaps worst of all, AFTER a crazed mob stormed the Capitol, treasonously attempting to prevent certification of a democratic election, we all saw Cruz join five other Senators (Hawley of Missouri, Tuberville of Alabama, Marshall of Kansas, Kennedy of Louisiana, and Hyde-Smith of Mississippi) in voting to sustain Arizona’s objection to its own state’s vote. Yup, even after this invasion of the Capitol, he continued to participate in Trump’s attempted cuckoo coup.
We all saw Cruz head off to Cancun when the people of his state faced losing power during a terrible winter storm AND THEN BLAME THIS ON HIS WIFE AND CHILDREN.
“Ted Cruz is the slimiest politician of our time.”
I mean, of course, the slimiest one currently holding office. There is, of course, the Loser, Jabba the Trump. In this Trump lives up to being what he says of himself with regard to everything, “the greatest,” “the best.” Even Cruz cannot match the trail of slime that Jabba the Trump has left and continues to leave behind him.
The disgust, repugnance and loathing this creature inspires cannot be overstated. Tis a shame Texans are represented by such a pitiful, troglodytic maggot. Texas is, without a doubt, a most beautiful state with some of the most stunning landscapes and vistas around; the locals are friendly, welcoming and cool as could be as anyone who’s been steeped in kindness and decency no matter where anyone’s from; and regional foods (along with lore and legend) are the best there is. Too bad the public face of this state is smeared by the fecal mien of Cruz, along with Abbott and his suck-up little toadie, Patrick.
“a pitiful, troglodytic maggot”; “fecal mien”
You are being too generous in your assessment of him, I think, Yossarian, but you come close to capturing the essence of the “man.”
I’m stealing “fecal mien.”
LOL. I just did, below.
Cruz slimed up the approval debate
with fecal mien and air irate,
dripping venom, lies, and hate,
and proceeded Jackson the Just to berate
and in manner dishonest, crude, and crass,
completely lacking in sense or class,
his own slimy history surely surpassed
and made of himself even more of an ass,
excelling his personal worst (inconceivable!),
which no decent person thought was achievable,
(there being no bottom seems hardly believable)
with comments so lame they’re not even defeasible.
In other words, how does one even argue against stuff as idiotic as what Cruz was saying? Judge (now Justice) Jackson’s expressions during this Cruz slime fest said it all.
He might as well have said, “Judge Jackson, you and I both went to Harvard Law School, so we both understand that sharp bonobos pulsate airily. I show you, here, the move poster for Silence of the Lambs. Do you really think that it’s acceptable to feed live Christians to doorknobs or even to partake of these yourself?”
cx: movie poster
Justice Jackson showed such patience during those hearings that I think she should be referred to, henceforth, as Saint Jackson. She might well have responded to the Republican “questioning” as Abraham Lincoln did once to Stephen A. Douglas during their third debate, in Jonesboro, Illinois, saying that were it possible to get that argument up to the consistency of a corn cob, he would know where to stuff it.
Bloomberg just donated 200 million to Eva Moskowitch success academy….the days of public schools are numbers as long as we have these oligarchs such as the bloombergs of the world. Bloomberg tried to destroy us when he was mayor and he is trying to do it again
FromThe NYPOST rag, 4-25-22: quote – Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Monday he’s donating a whopping $100 million each to two high-profile charter networks: Harlem Children’s Zone and Success Academy.
The massive investment — billed as a means to help close the achievement gap and meet demand for school choice seats — is part of a larger $750 million nationwide push Bloomberg has made for charter schools following the COVID-19 pandemic. end quote
The NYC Napoleon gives nothing, zero, zilch to the real actual public schools.
https://nypost.com/2022/04/25/bloomberg-invests-200m-in-nycs-high-profile-charter-school-networks/
From nydailynews, 4-25-22: quote – Billionaire former Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Monday he will donate $200 million to two city charter school networks as part of a national effort to bolster the publicly funded, privately run schools with philanthropy dollars.
The gift will funnel $100 million each to Success Academy and Harlem Children’s Zone, and comes on top of a separate announcement last week of $50 million from Bloomberg and other donors to help city charters develop their own summer program.
[snip] The donation is part of a pledge Bloomberg made earlier this year to direct $750 million to charter schools over the next five years to boost their enrollment by a targeted 150,000. end quote
NOTHING for the actual real public schools where most of the kids are educated.
Joe Jersey, please note that Bloomberg is donating $200 million to charter chains that are overflowing with funding.
Both have billionaires on their boards.
If NYC newspapers had real education journalists instead of sycophants, Mayor Eric Adams would be put on the spot over and over again as to why the most disadvantaged students in public schools have to subsidize the costs of charter schools that kick out students they don’t want to teach when those charters are already receiving $100 million dollars from their benefactors?
If NYC newspapers had real education journalists, reporters would be asking Eva Moskowitz on the record to explain to parents whose kids are ins public schools why their schools should have to subsidize an charter chain awash in money who refuses to share a penny of it with public schools but who does demand that severely disabled students be forced out of their public schools whenever a rich charter wants that space for free.
It’s only fair that charters share that money with public schools so the funding is equalized.
FYI, while I don’t especially like the US News rankings, it is telling that Success Academy High School is one of NYC’s lower ranked charter high schools compared to other NYC charter high schools that aren’t getting $100 million from Bloomberg. Compared to charter schools in the country, Success Academy ranks a lowly 597th. But it ranks #1 in the heart of Bloomberg. Yes, the same Mayor Bloomberg who – thanks to the lousy NYC education reporters – never had to explain why his administration tried to evict severely disabled students from their public school because Eva Moskowitz wanted their space.
(FYI, Mayor de Blasio refused to evict those disabled students and those lousy NYC education reporters criticized de Blasio for not giving Moskowitz what Bloomberg promised instead of asking Bloomberg and Moskowitz why the DOE was evicting severely disabled kids to help a charter school in the first place!)
In NYC alone, there are 163 NYC public high schools — 163!!!– ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY THREE!! — that are ranked higher that Bloomberg is not giving hundreds of millions of dollars to.
Why would Mayor Bloomberg want to give money to a charter school network that was caught with “got to go” lists and “model teachers” who humiliate and berate struggling low income kids instead of teaching them? When Bloomberg could be giving money to any of the 163 NYC public high schools that are better than Success Academy?
It’s not a reward for excellence. It’s simply another example of the rich getting richer.
If Success Academy isn’t sharing $100 million donations with public schools, then they should not receive taxpayer money because it is vital that the funding of public schools be equalized and fair.
And if Mayor Adams is going to use taxpayer money for a school that is receiving $100 million and not sharing it with public schools, then he should be forced to defend that decision over and over again.
Dark Money Networks That Attacked Justice Jackson Are Also Attacking Schools
https://truthout.org/articles/dark-money-networks-that-attacked-justice-jackson-are-also-attacking-schools/?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=804d4873-50dd-4c1b-82a5-f465ac3742ce
Amazing how many there are. The place is lousy with them.
“Some might think that climate change or the high cost of prescription drugs or high rates of child poverty was “the most important domestic issue in the country,” but not Senator Cruz.”
THE most important domestic issue in this country is the runaway bloated unaccountable and unaccountable for death and destruction machine in the world-the US Military. Until that beast and it’s handlers/suppliers are brought under control will be the most morally impoverished nation in the world.
correction: “. . . under control, the USofA will be. . . .”
being “morally impoverished” a disease diagnosis which will, surely, bring human death unto species extinction
Translation of Ted Cruz’s statement; ‘Voting for me is the greatest issue of the day. I will say anything which steals away the MAGA vote from Trump and his acolytes. That Whitehouse is mine I tell you,’
Cruz and the Far Right cadre keep pushing “school choice” because if you’ve ever spent any time observing in charter schools, you quickly see how these private schools promote the Right Wing agenda in countless subtle — and some not so subtle — ways throughout the entire curriculum…sometimes it’s just a comment…sometimes its a disdainful remark…sometimes is blatantly there in the curricular material. The violent young adult marchers in the deadly “Unite the Right” riot in Charlottesville were the first generation of Americans who were indoctrinated in charter schools. There are many thousands more like them in the charter school pipeline — and that’s what the Far Right wants to keep flowing.
Sure, the indoctrination plan is couched in the high-sounding buzz words of the “school choice” promoters — but the real agenda is absolutely deadly for our nation.
I have a note below (in moderation) that addresses this very issue. This is existential for the Repugnicans.
No longer in moderation!
The folks providing the big money that supports the Repugnican Reich Wing (thanks, Duane, for that phrase!) know that they have lost the young people. As polling by organizations like Pew Research shows, young voters coming up are against them on every issue. This is why they consider the creation of fundamentalist, nationalist madrassas so essential. This is why they oppose immigration. This is why they are horrified by “white replacement.” Turning back these clear trends is existential for them. Unless they do that, in a couple decades, they go the way of the Know Nothings. Even Trump, dense as he is, said precisely this in a speech last year, that if Republicans don’t turn these tides, they will never win another election. Coming up is their one shot. They have to win both the House and Senate in the midterms. Then they have to win the presidency in 2014, most likely with DeSantis at the top of the ticket. Then they can push through voting restrictions and a national curriculum and private school vouchers in order to end the democratic tide (little d and big D) that will sweep them away.
So, this is why “school choice” was a recurring theme in the last Repugnican Convention. I went through transcripts of that fascism fest and noted the following references to school choice:
Kim Klacik: We want higher paying jobs and more business opportunities. We want lower taxes. We want school choice.
Vernon Jones: He’s also supported school choice to assure [sic] that no child, no matter their race or Zip code, is left behind. Every child should have access to a quality education.
Donald Trump, Jr.: I was fortunate enough to grow up in a family that could afford the best schools and the finest universities, but a great education can not be the exclusive right of the rich and powerful. It must be accessible to all. And that’s why my dad is pro school choice. That’s why he’s called education access the civil rights issue, not just of our time, but of all time. It is unacceptable that too many African American and Hispanic American children are stuck in bad schools, just because of their zip code. Donald Trump will not stand for it. If Democrats really wanted to help minorities in underserved communities, instead of bowing to big money union bosses, they’d let parents choose what school is best for their kids.
Tim Scott: I realized a quality education is the closest thing to magic in America. That’s why I fight to this day for school choice, to make sure every child in every neighborhood has a quality education. I don’t care if it’s a public, private, charter, virtual or a homeschool, when a parent has a choice, their kid has a better chance and the president has fought alongside me on that.
Random parent dialogue:
Speaker x: [Trump brought about] Real-life policy changes that affected real Americans.
Speaker y: An amazing opportunity to get ahead, to have our businesses, to have our children educated, of school choice.
Speaker z: that is something that’s huge for parents right now, especially black moms, whose kids are trapped in failing school districts.
Tiffany Trump: We believe in school choice because a child’s zip code in America should not determine their [sic] future.
Mike Pence: jack is an eight-year-old from Wisconsin who was struggling academically and socially in school. Jack’s mom, Sarah, who works three jobs to support her son, applied for Wisconsin’s school choice voucher program.
Sarah Hughes: We’re glad that we were able to get the school choice voucher to go to that school. With Jack, he would have slipped through the cracks in public schools and having the option to go to a school that fits him has been a real game changer for us and I know that because of that opportunity that he is going to succeed and he is going to achieve that goal of being an apparatus engineer if that’s what he chooses to stick with.
Jeanette Nunez: We must continue to support out commander in chief who has a bold agenda. . . . It means fighting to provide the best quality education, by empowering parents and preserving school choice.
Eric Trump: Over and over, issue after issue. . . . school choice. . . . Promises made and promises for the first time were kept.
Melania trump: This president also continues to fight for school choice, giving parents more options to help their children flourish.
Tera Myers (speaking about Ohio’s voucher program): When I inquired about functional learning, I was told, “This is all you get, like it or not.” Well, I did not like it. One size did not fit all. So, I helped fight to pass legislation in Ohio for a special needs scholarship, so that all students could choose the right program for their needs. I worked to start a new functional learning program at our local private school. Finally, Samuel had an appropriate place to learn. Last December, Samuel was invited to the White House to meet our President and share his thoughts on education freedom. He said, “School choice helped my dreams come true. My school taught me the way I learn best. I was able to fit in. I made many friends. I became a part of my community. My teachers helped me become the best I can be.”
Lou Holtz: President Trump has demonstrated through his prison reform, advocating for school choice, and welfare reform that he wants Americans from all walks of life to have the opportunity to succeed and live the American dream.
Jack Pruitt: So, because you have an issue with president Trump’s tone, you’re going to allow Biden and Harris to deny our underserved black and brown children school choice?
Narrator introducing Pence: He. . . . expanded school choice.
Mike Pence: Joe Biden wants to end school choice, and president Trump believes that every parent should have the right to choose where their children go to school regardless of their income or area code.
Glorious Leader Who Shines More Orange than the Sun, Donald Trump: Biden also vowed to oppose school choice, and close all charter schools, ripping away the ladder of opportunity for Black and Hispanic children. In a second term, I will expand charter schools, and provide school choice to every family in America.The same liberals want to eliminate school choice while they enroll their children into the finest private schools in the land.
Even Trump and Cruz, dense as they are, recognize that unless they can kill public schools and create lots and lots of fundamentalist madrassas in which the indoctrinate a new generation of kids, they are their ilk will be history.
Ted Cruz is totally wrong.
The most important issues of our time are: \
How do we get rid of Fake FOX News, OAN, Ted Cruz, Ron DeSantis, Traitor Trump, and his family, Putin and his viscous crime empire, et al.?
Putin, Trump’s KGBFF
“The most important issues of our time are:”
No, those things you listed are of minor importance in the big scheme of things.
The most important issue of our time is to defund and knock down to size the most unaccounted for, unaccountable death and destruction machine that is the US Military and those who make profit off of that death and destruction which the last elected “conservative” president, D. D. Eisenhower, warned us about over a half century ago.
And so is an proper education from small on…American schools have never been the US’ “forte”.
Peskyvera, why is your server in Europe? Where are you? Where were you schooled? I was educated in American public schools, and I’m appreciative of what I learned. What gives you the right to look down on us?