Texas Democrats say they won't back down from school choice fight | Texas: The Issue Is

When the Texas Legislature gavels in a new session this January, we will see another round in the battle over school vouchers.

Earlier this month, Texas Governor Greg Abbott held a news conference claiming victory on the issue. Abbott says he has the votes to pass vouchers, which has become one of his legislative priorities.

Abbott actively campaigned against rural Republicans who opposed his school voucher plan in the previous legislative session.

“There was a tidal wave of support for those House candidates that I supported,” the governor said. “We will ensure that every parent has the right to choose the school that is best for their child.”

Gov. Abbott says he has 79 solid votes for school vouchers. A bill needs 76 votes to pass the Texas House.

Voucher opponents, like State Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, are not giving up the fight.

Talarico talked with FOX 7’s Rudy Koski about the upcoming debate and if compromise on the issue is possible.

State Rep. James Talarico: “I think the fight to save public education will be the number one issue in the next legislative session. A majority of the counties in the State of Texas don’t have a single private school in them and the cost of the voucher doesn’t even cover the full cost of tuition at most private schools in Texas, so working class families, like the ones in my district, or my former students on the west side of San Antonio, they can’t take advantage of this voucher scam, and so instead the vast majority of the money will end up going to wealthy families who are already sending their kids to private school.”

Rudy Koski: “The governor has spent the last several months doing what some would describe as a revenge tour, going after rural Republicans who were part of this pro-education, bipartisan blocking coalition. They are gone. You have lost them. He says he has the numbers. Are you throwing up the white flag?”

Rep. Talarico: “Not at all. We didn’t lose all of them, despite the onslaught of big money and big lies into these Republican districts you still had pro-public education Republican legislators survive and are coming back to the Capitol this session. I’m thinking about Drew Darby and Stan Lambert and Gary VanDeever, despite the victories that the governor may have scored in this election cycle, this should not be mistaken for a mandate on private school voucher scams. The governor didn’t campaign on vouchers. The majority of Texans, according to the latest polling, reject private school voucher scams.”

Rudy Koski: “Is there ground for compromise in this debate?”

Rep. Talarico: “I think a voucher is bad public policy no matter how you cut it. I will never support a voucher scam, but if my colleagues in the House, Republicans and Democrats, if we can all agree that we need to fully fund our neighborhood public schools, then I will work with anyone to make that a reality.”

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