After Voting For Education Cuts, McCain Touts Education Reform At NAACP
Today, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), in a speech focusing on education, addressed the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and suggested that he had the “clarity of purpose” to address education issues in the African American community: Education reform has long been a priority of the NAACP, and for good reason. For […]
Today, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), in a speech focusing on education, addressed the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and suggested that he had the “clarity of purpose” to address education issues in the African American community:
Education reform has long been a priority of the NAACP, and for good reason. For all the best efforts of teachers and administrators, the worst problems of our public school system are often found in black communities. Black and Latino students are among the most likely to drop out of high school. African Americans are also among the least likely to go on to college.
But McCain’s voting record has only exacerbated the “problems of our public school system.” In fact, McCain received an ‘F’ from the NAACP’s Civil Rights Federal Legislative Report Card for the 109th Congress (the last date for which a complete report is available), voting with the NAACP only 7 percent of the time and tying with 14 other conservative senators for last place. McCain “also received failing grades from the NAACP in every report card of the last decade.”
Here is a sampling of McCain’s record on education:
- Voted Against Head Start Programs: In 2005, for instance, McCain voted against increasing “federal spending on Head Start programs by $153 million.”
- Voted Against Expanding Pell Grants: While 45 percent of African Americans rely on Pell Grants to pay for college, McCain has consistently voted to cut the value of Pell Grants.
- Voted Against Title I Education Grants: McCain voted against increasing spending on Title I education grants, which are designed to help public schools that serve predominantly low-income students, by $3 billion.”
As the Wonk Room has points out, McCain’s campaign proposals do little to improve education in minority communities. On the contrary, the draconian funding cuts needed to pay for his McCain’s proposed tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy and his proposed spending freeze would likely crowd out education initiatives.
Education may be “a priority of the NAACP,” but not for McCain.
