Teachers split over picks for governor

[niccolos_smile]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/politics/4048333.html
Teachers split over picks for governor
By JANET ELLIOTT, Houston Chronicle, 07/15/06
AUSTIN -- The Texas Federation of Teachers on Friday endorsed independent gubernatorial candidate Carole Keeton Strayhorn, but the group's Houston affiliate is sticking with Democrat Chris Bell.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/texassouthwest/stories/DN-candidates_15tex.ART.State.Edition1.23ff8ad.html
Strayhorn impresses school bosses
By CHRISTY HOPPE, Dallas Morning News, 07/15/06
AUSTIN -- The school administrators lined up to get their pictures taken with Kinky Friedman. They warmly welcomed Chris Bell. But after two hours of speeches, issues, questions and quips, many said it was Carole Keeton Strayhorn who impressed them the most.

[Czolgosz]

1. The TFT (excluding the Houston group) is pathetic! C4n3p is nothing more

than a political opportunist with regard to education issues.

Over her career, c4n3p has taken about $1,000,000 from voucher-Nazi James Leininger so you have to take her recent anti-voucher talk with a HUGE grain of salt.

c4n3p was previously one of Texas' biggest proponents of requiring TAKS passage as a prerequisite for being promoted to the next grade and her current suggestion that Texas should "scale back" the importance of TAKS rings hollow.

Remind me, what is the win-loss record of candidates endorsed by TFT?

[sonias]

2. The Leininger money alone should have caused them pause

How can they support a woman who has essentially been bought by pro-voucher money bags Leininger? Do they really believe that she will not support a voucher program if elected? This is the same woman who has changed husbands four times and her party three times. c4n3p can not be trusted to keep her word much less her mind on any issue. She's just perfecting the george speak that got bush elected. Say enough things about each side to confuse the issue and all sides think she's on their side.

Sonia

[niccolos_smile]

3. I'm not sure what they see in her.

And as political opportunists, they're certainly backing the wrong horse on this one. They'd have better luck backing Kinky.

But when you have the blinders on and just accept what you hear and are told, then you get endorsement like this.

[art3]

4. BOR

bor has more in this

[Gingergal]

5. Texas State Teachers Association and Texas Federation of Teachers

both endorsed Strayhorn. Neither one asked their rank and file. They both abandoned their core policy of supporting the candidate with the voting record of supporting teachers and labor. Instead they went for a Republican candidate who had been for vouchers and for cutting CHIPS and then reversed both positions. They are taking someone's word on the issues instead of looking at how they voted over years. They both made a terrible mistake of assuming Strayhorn had a chance to win. They both should know that the ONLY one who has a chance of beating Rick Perry is Chris Bell. Instead they choose the candidate who is dead last in polling now. They look extremely stupid for backing her. And they have greatly angered their members. In 30 years this is the worst lapse in ethics and politics they have made and the worst betrayal I have seen of their core values and the betrayal of their members. If they keep this up, they will lose even more members including myself.
The AFL-CIO and Houston AFT have endorsed Chris Bell. I salute them. For now, to hell with TFT and TSTA. I wonder how many members they will get to to campaign for Scott McClellan's mother.