According to this DC Examiner article, Michael Burgess just introduced a bill to restore the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program. The bill’s name is the DC Student Opportunity and Choice Act.

“The DC school voucher program has been undeniably successful for the student who have had the opportunity to participate, so it would make sense to continue the program and expand it to even more students in the District of Columbia,” Burgess said.

This is one of those rare times when great policy mixes with putting the Democrats in a difficult position. If they oppose this legislation, they’ll be rightly characterized as the NEA’s puppet. They’d also rightly be characterized as opposing a program that’s lifting education outcomes for inner city children. (I wouldn’t want to defend a vote that gives students a great opportunity to succeed in life.)

This bill would overwrite the language contained in the recent 1,000 page omnibus spending bill by a joint conference of a House and Senate Appropriations Committee awaiting the President’s signature that effectively ends private school choice in the city.

Co-sponsoring the legislation are Congressmen John Boehner (R-Ohio), John Kline (R-Minnesota), Darrell Issa (R-California), and Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-New Jersey).

Speaker Pelosi and President Obama, welcome to hell’s tiny corner — east of the rock, just barely to the west of the hard place. If I didn’t know better, I’d say that the “Party of No” just proposed a bill that would improve the lives of children growing up in abject poverty. Doesn’t that contradict the Democrats’ characterization that the Republicans’ agenda was just saying no all the time?

For years, the Democrats have catered to the wishes of the NEA. There’s emerging a group of savvy GOP politicians, both at the national, state and local levels, who have figured out that this is a winning issue for conservatives. Here in Minnesota, Mitch Berg has been outstanding on education issues, highlighting the shortcomings of the current public school system. Legislators like David Hann, Mark Buesgens and Steve Gottwalt are pushing for edcuation reform that focuses on educational outcomes in exchange for funding.

Saying that this isn’t part of EdMinn’s agenda is understatement. I’d be surprised if the NEA’s reaction to the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program isn’t privately met with disdain. (They don’t dare say that publicly out of fear for the political hit they’d take.) I’m betting that this bill gets a hearing and that it’s amended in committee to include one poison pill after another.

If the NEA and other special interests take that approach, the GOP should challenge them on that. I’d force the Democrats to defend their amendments to the bill.

I’m betting that it gets a hearing because Rep. John Kline is the ranking member of the House Education and Labor Committee. If Chairman Miller tries playing games with this, I’m confident that Rep. Kline can make life miserable for him.

With us heading into an election year, Democrats will be especially jumpy. They know that they’re in for a difficult year. Every time that they propose something foolish, I’d highlight the amendment. I’d force them to either withdraw the amendment out of embarassment or I’d make them regret their votes on foolish amendments, especially if they’re aimed at appeasing a special interest group.

Technorati: Education, DC Scholarships, Mike Burgess, John Boehner, John Kline, Darrell Issa, Republicans, George Miller, NEA, EdMinn, Democrats, Election 2010

Cross-posted at California Conservative