[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 18 (Thursday, February 17, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H722-H723]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1015
                       WRONG ANSWERS FOR SCHOOLS

  (Mr. PENCE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PENCE. Madam Speaker, as I had the privilege to write this 
morning on the editorial page of USA Today, nobody doubts this 
President's heart for our kids. As a Governor, George W. Bush 
championed education reform, and, upon being elected President, brought 
his vision for standards and school choice to Capitol Hill.

[[Page H723]]

  Unfortunately, the defenders of the status quo in education succeeded 
in turning the President's original vision for education reform into a 
huge increase in the Federal Government's role in our local schools 
and, regrettably, they are at it again, as No Child Left Behind II, 
with national testing for high school students, comes to Congress.
  The American people have always known the government that governs 
least governs best in those functions of government closest to the 
family. However well-intentioned, one more unfunded mandate from 
Washington, D.C. will not cure what ails our local schools. Resources 
that promote reform through competition and school choice will.
  There is nothing that ails our local schools that parents and 
teachers of America cannot solve with the resources and the freedom to 
choose. Let us say no to more national testing. Let us say no to No 
Child Left Behind II.

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