Two decades ago, I lived in a group house on Capitol Hill with congressional aides to Jeffords, who was then in the House. During the summer, we all played on Jeffords’ softball team. Other members of Congress show up just for a game or two a season; Jeffords played almost every game at second base (he has since switched to first). Other members read a book aloud in class occasionally for a photo op; Jeffords still spends an hour a week reading to a child at a Capitol Hill public school.
Jeffords thinks it’s about time politicians start putting their money where their mouths are on education, so he told the Senate last week that he couldn’t support President Bush’s $1.6 trillion dollar tax cut. With the Senate split 50-50 and all Democrats opposed, the GOP needed every vote. Trent Lott put Jeffords through what one senator called a “torture chamber,” but Jeffords wouldn’t budge. By the end of the week, the Senate had approved a budget resolution with a $1.2 trillion cut-a $400 billion change because of one senator. It’s only the beginning of the process, but it looks as if Jim Jeffords just took a big bite out of George W. Bush’s signature idea.
The reason is special education. Most members of Congress send their kids to private school, and they don’t have any trouble paying their property taxes. So they are oblivious to what for years has been the single biggest issue-and most burdensome expense-for local school boards across the country. Starting in the 1970s, Congress mandated that all children with handicaps receive the education they need. But Congress didn’t provide the money needed to do so. State and local governments have been left holding the bag-with shortfalls in federal aid totaling about $180 billion over ten years. The result has been underfunded special ed and higher property taxes.
For years, Republicans-including a governor named Bush-have argued logically that we don’t need expensive new education programs when we haven’t funded the ones we already have, including special ed. They complained with justification about “unfunded mandates” from Washington. So you would think that with this budget, they would have chosen to fund special ed. You would be wrong. The law says that Washington should foot 40 percent of the cost of special ed at the state and local level. But the Bush budget has the feds paying only 15 percent, leaving local school districts strapped once again. Why help out handicapped kids, school boards and harried home owners when it might mean compromising on the magic number of $1.6 trillion?
Jeffords replied: compromise on that number-or you lose my vote. Bush, Lott & Co. compromised and reduced the Senate tax cut to $1.2 trillion. For now. The House supports the full $1.6 trillion and the GOP leadership still hopes to get it.
This week, members of Congress go home for a two-week recess. If moderate Republicans hear from their constituents about taxes, the President will get what he wants. If they hear about Medicare, prescription drug benefits and special ed-programs given short shrift in the Bush budget to make room for the tax cuts-then more members might begin to second guess the whole thing.
In that case, Jim Jeffords may end up with some company.
