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It is an interesting phenomenon. Conservative Iowans are told over and over Iowa House Republicans want to expand parental choice in education and that “parents matter” and that they really are bummed to fall short — again — of having votes to pass Education Savings Accounts.

But these House Republicans are supporting candidates for re-election who oppose Education Savings Accounts, expanding parental choice in education and clearly do not believe parents matter — or at least don’t believe they matter enough to provide them with Education Savings Accounts.

Representative Dustin Hite is chair of the Iowa House Education Committee and a public no to Education Savings Accounts in Iowa.

On the one hand, I applaud Hite for his honesty.

But here is what I cannot quite figure out — how can representatives who truly want school choice and ESAs simultaneously endorse Hite?

Enter Iowa House leadership — Speaker Pat Grassley and Majority Leader Matt Windschitl. Now, keep in mind Windschitl has already endorsed anti-life Republican Jane Bloomingdale in her primary.

Grassley was quoted as saying it is “obvious” the House wants to continue to work with Gov. Kim Reynolds to get “something” achieved when it comes to her education policy desires, and he said they’ll work on it in the “off season.”

But he is endorsing one of the bill’s most ardent roadblocks.

Does that make sense?

Windschitl wrote early in session that one of House Republicans’ top three priorities was parental choice in education.

Yet he too is endorsing Hite, who opposes expanding parental choice in education.

And there’s a lengthy list of legislators who “like” the endorsement post from Hite:

Rep. Jacob Bossman
Rep. Megan Jones
Rep. Bubba Sorensen
Rep. Ann Meyer
Rep. Steve Holt
Rep. Brian Lohse

Now that list includes a couple of House Republicans who promise they support ESAs and expanded school choice.

But if that is so, how can they also simultaneously want a major roadblock to ESAs and expanded school choice to be re-elected?

It is crazy.

Do Iowa House Republicans really think that Iowa Republicans are so stupid we’re going to believe both can be true at the same time?

That the Iowa House Republicans can really want to give Iowans expanded school choice and Education Savings Accounts and also want to see anti-expanded school choice and anti-ESA legislators re-elected?

Do they really think we are that dumb?

I suppose we’ll find out in one week.

Helena Hayes is running against Hite. She’s pro-school choice. She’s in favor of expanding parental choice in education. She’s pro-family. She isn’t going to be a stumbling block to a conservative agenda in Des Moines.

It’s disappointing to see supposed conservatives opposing her while instead working to have a roadblock to ESAs and school choice re-elected.

Author: Jacob Hall

3 COMMENTS

  1. They don’t just think we’re stupid, they actually hate anyone that might cause them to lose $$$ from organizations that are not even the PEOPLE as described in our Constitution. So much for their oath of office, as meaningless as the lip service they give us, while their lips are firmly attached to the teat of lobbyists.

    Iowa Constitution, Article 1, Bill of Rights, Section 1, Political Power:
    All political power is inherent in the PEOPLE. Government is instituted for the protection, security, and benefit of the PEOPLE, and they have the right, at all times, to alter or reform the same, whenever the public good may require it.

    Article 1, Section 20: Rights of Assemblage–Petition
    The PEOPLE have the right freely to assemble together to counsel for the common good; to make known their opinions to their representatives and to petition for a redress of grievances.

    No where in the bill of rights, does the constitution mention corporations, lobbyists and organizations, because they are not PEOPLE. They didn’t write the Constitution nor institute our government.

    Corporations have their own Article 8. But nothing in our Constitution equates them to PEOPLE. But the Bar (attorneys) would have you believe otherwise, by pointing to inferior laws that are repugnant to the Constitution as Counsels subvert the Common Law day in and day out.

    And thus is government corrupted by sneaky manipulation of the rule of law. And nothing will change until We The People rout out these grifters.

  2. Republicans don’t want school choice as it as written. As evidenced by it being voted down. By republicans. Twice. It is a bad bill. Taking $55 million out of public schools and putting that towards private schools?

    What happens if instead of a Catholic private school, there is a LGBT aligned private school, would you support taxpayer money diverted from public schools for parents who want to send their children to an LGBT school? Ridiculous.

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