Jeb Bush pushes controversial education legislation through FL House

[seafan]

(Cross-posted from FL forum for wider exposure)


Bush Education Plan Passes House

By CATHERINE DOLINSKI and JOSH POLTILOVE The Tampa Tribune
Published: Mar 24, 2006

TALLAHASSEE - The Florida House passed Gov. Jeb Bush's "A-plus-plus" plan Thursday despite questions from opponents about its constitutionality.
The bill, which passed 85-35, substantially revises Bush's 1999 A-plus education plan, adding subject majors for high-school students and enforcing performance-based pay for teachers. The bill now heads to the Senate.

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Rep. Jack Seiler, D-Wilton Manors, said the bill still contradicts the Florida Constitution, which places the state and county boards in control of schools.
Even with the amendment, he said, chronically failing schools would be subject to the governor's review and oversight.

The governor, Seiler said, does not have legal authority to "serve as some type of superhero on education," swooping in to fix a failing school.

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If passed into law, the provision will attract legal challenges, said House Minority Leader Chris Smith, D-Fort Lauderdale.

House Speaker Allan Bense, R-Panama City, acknowledged the possibility of a lawsuit but defended the provision.

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The House also approved a bill denying financial aid to foreign college students on temporary visas from all but Caribbean and Latin American countries.
Amid Democrats' accusations of xenophobia, the House voted 96-23 Thursday for the proposal from Rep. Dick Kravitz, R-Orange Park, which would deny state-funded financial assistance to foreign students and channel the money into need-based aid for legal Florida residents.
The bill heads next to the Senate.

Democrats immediately panned the policy for discouraging campus diversity.
"This bill takes a very myopic view of what America is supposed to be," said Rep. Curtis Richardson, D-Tallahassee.

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http://news.tbo.com/news/metro/MGB5DERW5LE.html

[Erika]

1. Pass an unconstitutional bill and wait for it to be struck down

Seems to be the method of operation by the GOP in Florida. Very expensive to pay the legal bills for bills that were passed only for GOP political reasons when it is known it's clearly unconstitutional.

It seems like brother, like brother.

[LuCifer]

2. GFD you Jeb!

I so can't wait for this festering pus-oozing anal-retentive sub-human douche-bag sorry excuse for a governor to be done ruining my state already!!!!!!!! And let's pray he is caught with a large dildo collection so there's no way in HELL he could ever run for even dog catcher again!!!!!!!

[JCMach1]

3. He couldn't do it without the dogpiles in the Florida house and

Senate...