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Well, like it or not, the Federal Government is already in control of education, and I doubt that it's leaving anytime soon. States receive huge amounts of money from the Fed Govt, and yet they continue to crank out kids who can't even do simple math.

No, it's not in control. And the amounts of federal education dollars delivered to states and districts have been diminishing even as BushCo has thrown more money at the federal level. Perkins grants (STW): virtually dead. And this year, we kill the Eisenhower.

Naturally, there are myriad other programs still awaiting the legislative ax. But we are patient. One program at a time...

As a side note, it can be observed that Bush's failed nationalization objectives have actually been used by education activists to attack their states' standards programs as irrelevant. In the resulting confusion, both state and national standards efforts can be legislatively defunded and thereby defeated. This is the short-term objective.

Bush has also put considerable effort into trying to get voucher programs passed. I think this is where conservative efforts should go.

Actually, this is a myth. He has not done this. It might receive more attention in his second term. At present, this is mostly a talking point for the consumption of the gullible, not a serious WH policy objective. You can see much more forceful action in, for instance, the Colorado legislature's efforts. And there are others too.

You can see much more forceful action in, for instance, the Colorado legislature's efforts.

A lot of this change must be local, by its very nature.

One of the problems is that we (conservatives) rail at the federal government for its top-down management style while at the same time depending on it to do things at the state level. I read an article elsewhere today, for example, about how much federal money that had been apportioned to bring about these changes was turned back by the states because they actually couldn't (or didn't want to) figure out how to change their system to use it.

I think if we want a serious change in this country, we have to elect conservative governors and legislators, both at the federal and STATE levels.

I live in Florida, and Gov. Bush has done some really good things here (you know they're good if the teachers' union hates them). But it's rough, because we have huge Dem areas here that don't want any change at all to a completely failed system, and they try to block him at every turn.

One of the areas where conservatives are very, very weak is, oddly enough, the local and state level. I think we've got to change this.