The Dallas Morning News 06/23/2009

Rick Perry's positions on education issues this session perfectly captures the challenge Kay Hutchison faces in a primary against her fellow Republican. He took some forward-looking stands that will make it hard for her to make him out as a disaster. And he has taken some odd positions that continue to make people wonder, what's the deal?

On the forward-looking side, the governor stood eyeball-to-eyeball with fellow Republicans Rob Eissler and Florence Shapiro on the school accountability bill. His unwillingness to budge on their plans to alter the state's policy against socially promoting third, fifth and eighth graders forced a compromise.

The final bill only will allow third graders to be promoted if they have not passed Texas' annual achievement exam. Fifth and eighth graders still must pass the test.

Like all compromises, the final result wasn't perfect, but it was a whole lot better than it could have been. And Rick Perry was the reason. He's been part of the reform push in Texas, including pushing for strong college-ready standards.

Perry also embraced -- and made a big deal of signing -- the Legislature's plan to create several new Tier One research universities. You may say that was a no-brainer. But this was the most consequential higher education decision since the Legislature decided in 2003 to let colleges set their own tuition rates. And this bill carried some serious bucks with it, something that Perry is not always wild about spending. He put himself squarely on the side of the science/research side of the state's future, which will make it hard for Hutchison to paint him simply as a Neanderthal from the right.

Likewise, he didn't carry water for the social right when it came to Dan Branch's bill to let districts use electronic textbooks. He signed the bill. For reasons I still don't understand, some conservatives supposedly didn't want him to do that.

But then there's the odd side.

Perry vetoed a bipartisan bill that would have let more districts offer full day, pre-K classes. Although the bill got scaled down, and had some problems at the outset, GOP Rep. Diane Patrick carried the proposal, got support from heavyweights like Jim Pitts, the GOP chair of the Appropriations Committee, and had business people backing it. Then, Perry took out his pen to veto it.

He claims the $25 million attached to the bill still will get spent for pre-K across Texas. And some think the money would be better spent on the pre-K efforts Texas Education Agency commissioner Robert Scott has built up than on Patrick's bill.

But, as our editorial today explains, it contained numerous reforms that would have strengthened pre-K education offerings. Here's one example: the standards for the classes would have been driven by the best research in the field. The bill also would have given districts a chance to reduce pre-K class sizes. Both the research focus and the smaller classes would have helped a great deal.

There's speculation that he caved to the right on this, but, man, the bill had big-time GOP support. This just struck me as a classic Perry move. He vetoed a bill that had broad support and now a bunch of people are left wondering, huh?

Next, look at the A&M situation. Even if Perry's not calling the shots on the removal of A&M President Elsa Murano, his pals showed up and trouble happened.

His biggest pal in this is Mike McKinney, the Aggie chancellor who once served Perry as chief of staff. He's the guy who evidently pushed Murano out, which has let to rampant speculation that Perry himself wants the job.

He's naturally denying that, and I tend to think Perry much rather be governor. But, whether he wants the Aggie job or not, he's seen as the big-heavy in this drill. And he's risking alienating some within Aggieland, which is the former A&M yell leader's natural constituency.

Being seen as the big heavy has been part of Perry's problem all along. He's kind of like Eddie Haskell. When he shows up, trouble's likely to break out.

Look back at the 2001 session, his first as governor. Out of nowhere, he vetoed a bunch of bills, angering legislators. Then in 2003, he pushed redistricting hard, which led to a very divisive session. And this year, he goes out and hints at secession. Meanwhile, the Legislature's replete with stories of Perry taking people to task when they disagree with him.

That's why I think his education decisions this session provide a great insight into Rick Perry. His positions will at once make it harder than Kay Hutchison might think to categorize him and at the same give her a clear shot on goal. That's always been the case with our governor.

Go Back

What Rick Perry's education record says

Tuesday, June 23, 2009 William McKenzie Rick Perry's positions on education issues this session perfectly captures the challenge Kay Hutchison faces in a primary against her fellow Republican. He took some forward-looking stands that will make it hard for her to make him out as a disaster. And he has taken some odd positions that continue to make people wonder, what's the deal? On the forward-looking side, the governor stood eyeball-to-eyeball with fellow Republicans Rob Eissler and Florence Shapiro on the school accountability bill. His unwillingness to budge on their plans to alter the state's policy against socially promoting third, fifth and eighth graders forced a compromise. The final bill only will allow third graders to be promoted if they have not passed Texas' annual achievement exam. Fifth and eighth graders still must pass the test. Like all compromises, the final result wasn't perfect, but it was a whole lot better than it could have been. And Rick Perry was the reason. He's been part of the reform push in Texas, including pushing for strong college-ready standards. Perry also embraced -- and made a big deal of signing -- the Legislature's plan to create several new Tier One research universities. You may say that was a no-brainer. But this was the most consequential higher education decision since the Legislature decided in 2003 to let colleges set their own tuition rates. And this bill carried some serious bucks with it, something that Perry is not always wild about spending. He put himself squarely on the side of the science/research side of the state's future, which will make it hard for Hutchison to paint him simply as a Neanderthal from the right. Likewise, he didn't carry water for the social right when it came to Dan Branch's bill to let districts use electronic textbooks. He signed the bill. For reasons I still don't understand, some conservatives supposedly didn't want him to do that. But then there's the odd side. Perry vetoed a bipartisan bill that would have let more districts offer full day, pre-K classes. Although the bill got scaled down, and had some problems at the outset, GOP Rep. Diane Patrick carried the proposal, got support from heavyweights like Jim Pitts, the GOP chair of the Appropriations Committee, and had business people backing it. Then, Perry took out his pen to veto it. He claims the $25 million attached to the bill still will get spent for pre-K across Texas. And some think the money would be better spent on the pre-K efforts Texas Education Agency commissioner Robert Scott has built up than on Patrick's bill. But, as our editorial today explains, it contained numerous reforms that would have strengthened pre-K education offerings. Here's one example: the standards for the classes would have been driven by the best research in the field. The bill also would have given districts a chance to reduce pre-K class sizes. Both the research focus and the smaller classes would have helped a great deal. There's speculation that he caved to the right on this, but, man, the bill had big-time GOP support. This just struck me as a classic Perry move. He vetoed a bill that had broad support and now a bunch of people are left wondering, huh? Next, look at the A&M situation. Even if Perry's not calling the shots on the removal of A&M President Elsa Murano, his pals showed up and trouble happened. His biggest pal in this is Mike McKinney, the Aggie chancellor who once served Perry as chief of staff. He's the guy who evidently pushed Murano out, which has let to rampant speculation that Perry himself wants the job. He's naturally denying that, and I tend to think Perry much rather be governor. But, whether he wants the Aggie job or not, he's seen as the big-heavy in this drill. And he's risking alienating some within Aggieland, which is the former A&M yell leader's natural constituency. Being seen as the big heavy has been part of Perry's problem all along. He's kind of like Eddie Haskell. When he shows up, trouble's likely to break out. Look back at the 2001 session, his first as governor. Out of nowhere, he vetoed a bunch of bills, angering legislators. Then in 2003, he pushed redistricting hard, which led to a very divisive session. And this year, he goes out and hints at secession. Meanwhile, the Legislature's replete with stories of Perry taking people to task when they disagree with him. That's why I think his education decisions this session provide a great insight into Rick Perry. His positions will at once make it harder than Kay Hutchison might think to categorize him and at the same give her a clear shot on goal. That's always been the case with our governor.

What Rick Perry's education record says