NEA advances endorsement for Obama in 2012.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/05/06/n-e-a-advances-endorsement-for-obama-in-2012/



{emphasis added}

:sarcasm:

They are just trying to gain some influence by being the first to endorse. Motivating individual members will be another story.

Their education policies have been terrible for teachers.

For example, stimulus money runs out at the end of this year, causing many furloughs and jobs lost to attrition. This will translate into larger class sizes and a cut in programs and activities next school year.

The "meme" about dismissing ineffective teachers is just a wingnut talking point. There is no glut of ineffective teachers and there is no barrier to dismissing them. They just cannot be fired "at will" for political reasons (if they are in a union and/or have tenure). When Duncan and Obama start listening to teachers and enacting meaningful "reforms", I might change my opinion. NEA will not influence either my donations or my activism.

I do understand the opposition to RTT, but many jobs were saved by the stimulus, which Republicans opposed.

and it is regrettable that it could not be bigger but it had to be watered down to get Collins, Snowe and the damn Blue Dogs (needed 60 in the Senate remember).

If there had been no stimulus, many more teacher jobs would have disappeared.

Rather than standing up and fighting for what is right.

Not to mention that the Obama administration withheld that money all of last spring and summer, when hiring and firing decisions for teachers are made, while pushing his RTTT bullshit. He only released it in September, far too late to help with hiring and firing of teachers. A lot of good teachers suffered because of that little game he played.

Not after what will amount to 4 years of the trash talk these two have managed to use to kiss ass.

Every campaign I've volunteered in has had a volunteer staff of 80% (at least) teachers or former teachers. Don't think that will be the case this time.

somehow equals "RARGH U HAET TEACHERS".

and the last two years MORE than teachers and public education. Show me who among the thousands of banksters, the bought and paid for regulators, and tricky Wall Street types who totally shoved this economy off a cliff lost their jobs or went to jail. BP? Coal? Or let's talk about the environmental mess that Bill Gates and his friends in the computer world are leaving us all to deal with. And hey while we're at it, let's get into the oil speculators.

Nothing in my post suggested undying love for teachers or unions and you know it. Everything in my post suggests that Obama and Flunkin' Duncan need to do better. They aren't and we know it. So deal with it.

You can only kick a dog so many times before it bites back or leaves your ass.