Last night, the Senate considered an amendment by Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) to reauthorize the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program. The amendment failed 42 – 55. The bi-partisan amendment, which was cosponsored by Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Robert Byrd (D-WV), and George Voinovich (R-OH), would have allowed new students to enroll in the scholarship program and would have ensured current students are able to remain in the existing private schools. The Washington Post writes today:
Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.) introduced an amendment to a reauthorization bill for the Federal Aviation Administration that would have extended the voucher program for five years and funded it at $20 million a year, opening it to new students. The Senate killed Lieberman’s attempt to amend a different bill earlier this month.
‘Many teachers in our nation’s capital . . . are just not providing an adequate education to their students,’ Lieberman said. ‘We’re giving these children the ability to save their own lives.’
More than 1,700 students participated in the 2008-09 school year. That number dropped to 1,319 this year because applications were closed to new students in the spring, and some students have graduated or left the program…
‘Already, D.C. parents have a choice,’ said Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, who spoke on the Senate floor against the program. ‘We have over 60 charters in the District of Columbia, and they’re growing all the time.’
While charters are in fact serving many children, the scholarships are specifically meeting the needs of those students enrolled in the program – and have been successful in raising academic achievement.
In the video above, watch Sen. Lieberman explain how a federally-mandated evaluation of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program found children to be improving academically.
House Cloakroom: March 15 – 21, 2010
Analysis:
It’s crunch time on health care. The Budget Committee will meet Monday to start marking up a shell of a Reconciliation Bill. The Rules Committee will then meet as early as Wednesday to hollow out whatever the Budget Committee passed and then insert a new bill from Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) office. The Majority is still planning to use the “Slaughter Rule” that would allow the House to pass the Senate health care bill without voting on it. Final votes are expected to stretch into the weekend.
Senate Cloakroom: March 15 – 21, 2010
Analysis:
A new dynamic has been thrown into the health care mix: the impact of reconciliation on the remaining components of President Obama’s legislative agenda. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) raised the stakes last week when he suggests the controversial procedure could undermine his efforts to strike a bipartisan deal on comprehensive immigration reform. Graham is also the only Senate Republican thought to be negotiating an agreement on global warming legislation. Will President Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) move forward on health care reconciliation at the expense of these other priorities? Those conversations are no doubt taking place behind closed doors and could determine the outcome of Obamacare itself.
Major Floor Action:
The Senate will continue work on H.R. 1586, the FAA reauthorization bill. Potential amendments include earmark reform, discretionary spending limits and the continuation of the DC school choice program.
Major Committee Action:
- The Armed Services Committee will hold a hearing on the FY2011 Defense Department budget.
- The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will hold hearing on reauthorization of the education legislation.
- An Energy and Natural Resources subcommittee will hold a hearing park, trails and Heritage sites legislation.
- The Environment and Public Works Committee will hold a hearing on urban and rural mobility, and congestion.