[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 132 (Monday, September 29, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1886-E1887]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        OPPORTUNITY SCHOLARSHIPS

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                            HON. RON PACKARD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 29, 1997

  Mr. PACKARD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to 
support educational freedom for the children of Washington, DC. By 
providing parents a choice in education, kids in the District of 
Columbia can be rescued from drug-infested, run down schools.
  The fiscal year 1998 District of Columbia appropriations bill 
contains a provision to allow parents in Washington, DC, to choose 
schools for their children with the help of opportunity scholarships. 
Sadly, President Clinton has threatened to veto this legislation if 
opportunity scholarships are included in the bill.
  Today, thousands of children in this city are literally being robbed 
of their futures because

[[Page E1887]]

this administration and congressional Democrats are afraid to anger 
powerful labor unions who support the status quo. Mr. Speaker, this is 
no longer about conservative versus liberal values--the parents of this 
city's children don't want to make this political--they simply want 
their children to get a quality education. Right now, President Clinton 
refuses to let that happen.
  Mr. Speaker, we can not afford to fail our children. There is nothing 
more important than the quality of our schools and the value of the 
education they provide. Without opportunity, we are shortchanging our 
children and depriving them of any hope for a prosperous future.
  The truth is, we are losing children every day to the lure of drugs 
and crime because inner-city schools are failing to give them the tools 
they need to succeed. Mr. Speaker, many of these children may still get 
the chance to receive the education they deserve if their parents are 
given the choice to send them to quality schools.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to send the President a bill that 
contains opportunity scholarships. We should let those who would rather 
trap children in poor schools where crackpipes and drug syringes are as 
plentiful as pencils explain why they think choice and opportunity in 
education is such a bad idea.

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