The Lt. Governor and His Minions

Sen. Bettencourt made news last week when he asked the Attorney General for an opinion regarding the Texas Educators Vote initiative to engage educators as active voters.  What struck me is that this was likely not actually initiated by Bettencourt but that he is probably acting at the direction of the LG.  Sadly, this is very much in keeping with how he (the LG) has gotten Republican senators to follow along as if he were the pied piper, helping to promote his personal agenda.

This also reminds me of a conversation I had with Sen. Burton’s education person during the 84th session.  As a newly elected senator, I wanted to engage her in a discussion about the importance of public education in her district.  But because I was an elected trustee, she would not meet with me, instead having me meet with her education policy person.  When I pressed him for her position on issues impacting public education, I will never forget his response, going something like, “The Senator will vote the way the Lt. Governor tells her to”.  What a sad (but unfortunately true!) reaction.  And not much has changed over the time she has been in office.

So now back to Sen. Bettencourt as one of the minions.  It’s clear that the Lt. Governor (in this case, likely through the senator) senses a real resistance on the part of educators to the initiatives he continues to push, including vouchers (by any name).  But where in the Texas Educators Vote initiative or other similar and complimentary efforts are there specific recommendations on how to vote?  There simply is a reference to supporting those who support public education.  Quite honestly, the more that individuals like Sen. Bettencourt help to create the headlines, the more engaged the education community should be.

And where does all of this go from here?  Public education will become an increasingly frequent topic of conversation with discussions about vouchers (by any name), the lack of accountability under a voucher program (remember, the LG said that accountability here falls to the parents to define and oversee), and the startling difference in results between public schools and other forms of school choice.  When school choice is mentioned, remember that public education is also school choice.

I’ve written before about the grassroots impact on outcomes.  The initiatives now in play encouraging educators to engage and to vote is truly a grassroots effort, involving numerous organizations and a community of educators who will be adversely impacted by some of what Austin wants to do.  Sadly, this is not just about the educators, as we all know.  More than 5.4 million Texas public education children are counting on all of us to do what is best for them, and that is to continue to make public education a priority.  The minions must not win!