Longer Recording Released of Ken Paxton’s Underwhelming Answer to Stopping Common Core and CSCOPE as Attorney General

At the end of November, I posted up an article, Shock Recording: Ken Paxton Not interested in Stopping Common Core or CSCOPE as Attorney General.

The article included a clip of a voice recording where Ken Paxton is asked about CSCOPE and Common Core. Ken Paxton responded by saying the Attorney General will probably won’t get involved in that.

In response to the article, I had some Paxton supporters contact me and say that the audio clip was cut short. They alleged that someone cut the recording short and that Ken Paxton did say he would not get involved, but then went on to say he will fight these things as Attorney General. This bothered me because I certainly would never post any audio that was altered, or that was cut short in a way to make it appear as though someone said one thing when in fact they go on to answer the question in further detail.

I think Paxton is a good guy and a conservative. I only oppose him now because I believe that Barry Smitherman is better than Paxton. I truly believe that Barry Smitherman is even more conservative and will be more of a fighter. It is the little things that no one sees that sets Smitherman apart from Paxton in my mind. Such as Paxton Missing Hundreds of Votes and Smitherman Missing None, or Smitherman rejecting budget increases for his office while Paxton voted to increase his office budget.

That being said, I would never post anything false against Paxton, so I went on a mission to find a longer version of the audio recording. If the audio I had was cut short then I wanted to make it right.

I did find a longer version of the recording. I uploaded this longer version to YouTube and posted at the end of this article for everyone to hear. This audio recording shows Paxton answering a question before the CSCOPE/COMMON CORE question, and then he answers the CSCOPE/COMMON CORE question, and then this longer version also shows him going on to answer a different question about redistricting. This longer version clearly shows that the original voice recording I posted a month ago was accurate and Paxton was not cut short in the recording.

Also in response to the article, I had some Paxton supporters contact me and tell me that Paxton stood against COMMON CORE and CSCOPE as a legislator. To this I replied that I never said he didn’t do that as a legislator, but he is not running for the Texas Legislature, he is running to be the Texas Attorney General. What he did as a Legislature is good but I want to know what he will do as the Attorney General. His response that as Attorney General he will probably not get involved was surprising to me. But since Paxton did not know he was being recorded, I believe his response to show his true intentions regarding the issue. Barry Smitherman has come out and stated that as Attorney General he will fight against Common Core and CSCOPE. Why wait for a lawsuit as Ken Paxton has said should happen before he gets involved? Attorney General Greg Abbot did not wait for a lawsuit. He sent a letter to CSCOPE and told them to comply with the law and they did. There was no lawsuit there but Abbott was being proactive and defending the laws of Texas. Smitherman will also be proactive in defending Texas from illegal use of CSCOPE and Common Core. Paxton clearly states that as Attorney General he would probably not get involved unless there was a lawsuit. That is not good enough for me.

I welcome Ken Paxton or his campaign to reply under this post any response to this recording and what Paxton said in the recording. I have not received any statement from Paxton regarding this recording or else I would have posted it here.

Barry Smitherman Stood for Religious Rights of Kountze Students with Greg Abbott

As Christmas nears, one thing we are talking about is the Merry Christmas bill. The Merry Christmas bill was passed this year to allow teachers and students to be able to celebrate Christmas in schools without fear of lawsuits. This is a great bill, but it only scratches the surface of stopping the attacks against Christianity in schools. The Texas Attorney General is on the front lines defending the religious rights of Texans and Texas Students.

Texas Attorney General Candidate Barry Smitherman does not just stand up for Christian Conservative values, Smitherman goes out of his way to get involved. From rallying against Common Core and CSCOPE, to promoting the Merry Christmas Bill, Smitherman has been there. Just last week, Barry Smitherman went way out of his way to speak at a Women on the Wall #CanISee anti-Common Core community meeting in Frisco, TX organized by Alice Linahan.

Since we are on the topic of standing up for students in Texas, I want to let everyone know about how Smitherman stood up for the religious rights of cheerleaders at Kountze High School. Many people do no know about how Smitherman went out of his way to stand up for the religious rights of students in the small east Texas city of Kountze. Kountze, TX is a small city in Hardin County in East Texas. Last year there was a battle of ideas that occurred here. The Kountze Cheerleaders made their own signs with their own money to hold up at public football games after school. Some of the signs had encouraging Bible verses on them. The Wisconsin based freedom from religion foundation did not like that these signs had Bible verses on them. This anti-Christian organization is known for going around the country finding people to threaten with lawsuits unless they back down from anything that even mentions God. These students have a Constitutional right to express their faith, even in school. Unfortunately, many organizations and individuals do not have the money to fight a lawsuit so they just give in to the demands of the freedom from religion foundation.

These students in Kountze, TX were not backing down from their faith or from their rights. The students and parents started speaking out and created a facebook group. They took a bold stand. Word started to get out about the situation and the cheerleaders got some legal help from the Liberty Institute.

Texas Railroad Commissioner Barry Smitherman heard about this situation in Kountze, TX. Smitherman probably had lots of important issues on his plate, but he took time to get involved and stood up for these kids in Kountze. I am from Hardin County and I was very involved in standing up for the Kountze Kids. Barry Smitherman personally sent me a hand written statement expressing support for the Kountze Kids and standing up for their Constitutional rights.

See the Kountze Faith letter form Barry Smitherman here

This really impressed me and this is one of the reasons why I really support Barry Smitherman. Smitherman got involved even when no one was looking. His actions are exactly what I would expect from a possible Texas Attorney General. In fact, your current Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott did get involved to defend and protect the religious rights of the Kountze Kids.

Barry Smitherman getting involved over the years from Frisco to Kountze shows me that he have the values and dedication needed to be the next Texas Attorney General.

Donna Garner Endorses Barry Smitherman, Says Ken Paxton Never Publicly Helped Conservatives on SBOE and he Supported Moderates

also read this Statement from Barry Smitherman: Barry Smitherman takes Strong Stand against Common Core and CSCOPE as Attorney General

Donna Garner is one of the foremost education experts in Texas. She has been fighting against liberalism in our Texas Public education since probably before I was born. Every elected official in Texas and anyone in the Texas education world knows Donna Garner. She fought for conservative State Board of Education Members when they were attacked. She fought against Common Core and CSCOPE.

Donna Garner has endorsed Barry Smitherman for Texas Attorney General. Donna Garner sent out an email yesterday explaining in detail why she supports Barry Smitherman over Ken Paxton. Basically, the summary of what Donna Garner says is that she has been intricately involved in Texas Education and not once in the past decade has Paxton testified for or promoted any of the important conservative issues facing Texas education. Even when the conservative State Board of Education members were vilified by the media for standing for conservative values, Paxton was nowhere to be found and offered no help to the conservative SBOE members who were facing challengers in their elections. in fact, Paxton admitted to Donna Garner that he was supporting a moderate to the SBOE because she had given him large campaign donations.

Donna goes on to say that Paxton did finally do something this past session by co-authoring a bill against CSCOPE, but then a recent recording surfaced of Ken Paxton stating that as Texas Attorney General he will probably not get involved in Common Core or CSCOPE.... that lackadaisical attitude towards defending Texas from Common Core is not something she wants to see from a possible future Texas AG.

Donna Garner then goes on to explain what she supports Smitherman, who has clearly claimed that as Texas Attorney General he will fight Common Core from coming into Texas.

Below are a few paragraphs from Donna Garners Full article which can be found here:

WHAT ABOUT KEN PAXTON FOR TAG?

Then there is Ken Paxton.  I actually endorsed Ken for the TAG early-on when called by his campaign staffer.  At that time I knew many negatives about Dan Branch but almost nothing personal about Barry Smitherman, the Texas Railroad Commissioner.

I knew that Ken was a pro-life, pro-family-values conservative; and I had worked hard along with many other conservatives leading up to the 82^nd Legislative Session to help him to become the Speaker of the House instead of Joe Straus. Unfortunately, Ken took his name out of consideration at the very last minute, leaving us without a conservative champion to support.

I decided to endorse Ken for the TAG but in doing so I had to overlook the personal conversation in which I learned that he supported a moderate for the Texas State Board of Education simply because she had given his campaign large donations.

I also had to swallow my deep emotions over the fact that Ken along with the other Texas Legislators had passed HB 5 and HB 866 which basically gut the authentic education reform that we conservatives had fought for 15 years to establish in Texas.

As Ken came out yesterday with strong statements about what a stalwart he has been on education issues, I have done some reflecting on my own.  During the years 2005 – 2012 in which the Texas State Board of Education conservatives were fighting against all odds to adopt Type #1 curriculum standards (TEKS) for English/Language Arts/Reading, Science, Social Studies, and Math, I do not think I can remember a single time when Ken Paxton’s name was mentioned.  I cannot remember that he ever testified, wrote a public statement, came out with editorials in support of the SBOE’s efforts to put Texas on the path to authentic education reform with the 4 x 4 graduation requirements and Type #1 STAAR/EOC’s.  Nor can I remember his authoring or helping to pass legislation to try to rescue the SBOE conservatives from vilification by the media, Democrats, and the RINO’s.  In fact, so far as I can remember, Ken was nowhere around when the SBOE needed  his public  support during those very difficult years. 

It Ken was concerned enough to co-author HB 462 that supposedly banned Common Core Standards in Texas, how could he possibly have muddled his answer so badly on Nov. 18, 2013, when the question was asked him regarding Common Core Standards during the TAG campaign event?  (Please listen to either of the audio clip attachments.)  I do not think that Ken’s lackadaisical answer sounds like the type of response that the committed and impassioned people who signed his endorsement letter yesterday would have said. I believe that if any of them had been asked the same question Ken was asked about Common Core Standards, these people would have answered back with a diatribe of all that is wrong with CCSI. 

I have it on record that when Barbara Cargill was contacted by Ken’s campaign on 11.22.13 after my article had surfaced, she was driving home from an arduous four-day Texas State Board of Education meeting in Austin.  Barbara had not read my article at that time because she had been so inundated with chairing the SBOE sessions. I know that she and Ken have been friends for some time and that she had no idea what came out of his own mouth on Nov. 18, 2013, when asked about his position on Common Core Standards/CSCOPE if elected TAG. Whether that would have changed her endorsement of him, I cannot say.

BARRY SMITHERMAN FOR TAG 

In contrast to Ken’s weak answer on the Common Core/CSCOPE, how did Barry Smitherman answer questions about education issues and the positions he would take as the TAG? 

We have at least three strong indications:  (Exhibit A) Barry’s response to the article on global warming, (Exhibit B) his strong statement issued  on 11.23.13 about Texas HB 462/state sovereignty, and (Exhibit C) the letter he sent to his own daughter’s teacher regarding the Southern Poverty Law Center and its liberal-left dogma that had been inserted into his daughter’s curriculum lesson on “To Kill a Mockingbird.” 

Exhibit A

11.18.13  -- “TX RR Comm. Barry Smitherman Responds to Common Core Global Warming” -- http://nocompromisepac.ning.com/profiles/blogs/texas-railroad-commissioner-smitherman-responds-to-common-core

Exhibit B

11.23.13 -- “Ken Paxton Not Concerned About Common Core or CSCOPE” – http://nocompromisepac.ning.com/profiles/blogs/ken-paxton-not-concerned-about-common-core-or-cscope-by-donna?xg_source=activity

Exhibit C

9.30.13 – “Letter to Daughter’s Teacher: Intolerance in American Study” -- http://nocompromisepac.ning.com/profiles/blogs/barry-smitherman-s-wife-interviewed-women-on-the-wall-9-30-13?xg_source=activity  -- (This article contains Barry Smitherman’s letter to his daughter’s teacher in which Smitherman explains his concerns over a worksheet provided by the Southern Poverty Law Center when the class was studying To Kill a Mockingbird.  The SPLC is the organization that continues to label tea party patriots, constitutionalists, Family Research Council, Texas Eagle Forum, Concerned Women for America, and many others as either a "hate" group or "right wing extremists.” Barry Smitherman makes it very clear that the SPLC worksheet has no place in Texas schools.

BARRY SMITHERMAN’S PERSONAL LIFE AND LEGAL BACKGROUND

Ken Paxton is a fine Christian fellow; and I applaud him and the other Legislators who fought for pro-life bills in the Legislature. However, Barry Smitherman is a strong conservative Christian also.  People who know him and his family well and who are respected conservatives themselves have testified to this. 

10.31.13 – “The Race for Texas Attorney General – Barry Smitherman’s Record” by Bob Price --http://texasgopvote.com/issues/stop-big-government/race-texas-attorney-general-barry-smithermans-record-006025

9.30.13 – “Texas Right To Life Endorses Barry Smitherman for Texas Attorney General” -- http://www.scribd.com/doc/172171261/PR-13-09-30 – contains this quote from Smitherman – “I always have and always will stand shoulder to shoulder with Texas Right to Life promoting Pro-Life policies; and as Attorney General, I will defend good Pro-Life pieces of legislation like HB-2 that are constantly under assault from radical pro-choice organizations.”

COMPARING BARRY AND KEN

Therefore, we have to consider the skill sets that are necessary for the Texas Attorney General’s office which is very different from a state legislator’s skill sets.  Even though Ken Paxton has made a good Texas Legislator, he may not have the natural leadership skills and background expertise to be the TAG.  As someone recently stated succinctly, this is the choice we have: 

Ken Paxton – probate lawyer; estate planning; real estate; corporate transactions; 2003 to current, Texas Legislator

OR

Barry Smitherman – former Harris County prosecutor (Assistant District Attorney), service on the Public Utilities Commission (PUCT) where he also served as Chairman, heading up two large state agencies (2004 – present) plus 17 years in the private sector working in public finance, has sued the EPA 7 times to protect Texas oil and gas. 

Quote from David Bellow:

As head of the Texas Public Utilities Commission, Smitherman sued Obama's EPA 5 times. Then, as the statewide, elected Chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission, Smitherman sued Obama's EPA 2 more times. Suing Obama 7 times is a huge statement and one that clearly shows that Smitherman is already ready to step into the position of Texas Attorney General and keep on suing Obama. (11.11.13)

Quote from David Bellow: 

As Chairman of Texas Public Utilities and the Railroad Commission, Barry Smitherman spent DOUBLE DIGIT percentages UNDER BUDGET and gave over 130 million dollars back to the State of Texas. (9.28.13 –http://www.texasgopvote.com/issues/grow-economy/barry-smitherman-saved-texas-taxpayers-over-130-million-slashed-spending-cut-005906 )

TWO MORE POINTS

The usual talking points against Barry Smitherman are (#1) he has no voting record, and (#2) he supposedly brought Smart Meters into Texas.

On point (#1), what about our Texas Hero Ted Cruz?  He had no voting record, but we all know his strength of commitment which he carried right into the Senate and The Beltway.   

On Point (#2), if voting records are so important, then what about the voting records of Ken Paxton and Dan Branch? 

As best I can document, way back on 4.13.05, Dan Branch and Ken Paxton both voted for HB 2129 (79^th Legislative Session – R). This bill set up the original legislation for Smart Meters (i.e., the deployment of advanced electricity meters…advanced metering and metering information networks) – Section 7(b)(h); Section 8(b) -- http://www.journals.house.state.tx.us/hjrnl/79r/pdf/79rday48final.pdf#page=12

Dan Branch co-authored Smart Meters legislation. Paxton actually voted twice for the implementation of Smart Meters and directed the Public Utilities Commission to allow the utilities to charge a fee for installation.  Paxton also supported a provision that required the PUC to report to the Legislature on the utilities progress in installing Smart Meters.

If both Dan Branch and Ken Paxton felt the Smart Meters were such an important issue, why did neither of them address it during the 83^rd Legislative Session?

To be honest, if the Texas Legislature had not passed the Smart Meters bills in the first place, we would not have them in our state. The PUC agency did not step outside its boundaries and make law; the PUC’s job is to implement whatever the Legislature passes. In fact, if Smitherman as chair of the PUC had “made” the Smart Meters laws, he most certainly would not have been re-appointed by the Texas Senate in 2007 and reconfirmed in 2009. That is the checks and balances process on the PUC by the TX Senate, and Ken Paxton was in the Senate when Smitherman was confirmed.

Now to be fair to all three men (Smitherman, Paxton, and Branch), back when Smart Meters were first introduced, the public did not widely know of any potential health hazards; and we did not know that Obama would be able to usurp state sovereignty and take complete control of our country. We did not have to fear the federal government as we now do under Obama. 

In fact, on June 27, 2012, Barry Smitherman shared his vision about the future of energy and electric cars [This piece was actually taped in 2009; the SwitchEnergyProject, begun in 2009, is under the Bureau of Economic Geology at the University of Texas/State of Texas and took three years to produce -- http://switchenergyproject.com/about/the-project].  Smitherman said he felt that gasoline-powered cars would prevail until at least 2050 but that people who chose to purchase electric cars could use their Smart Meters to save them money by figuring out what hours were the least expensive to charge the batteries on their cars:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wd93yV1Fg98

Unfortunately, because of the newly released information about the NSA data collection, the IRS targeting of conservatives, and the total takeover by the federal government of our healthcare system through ObamaCare and our public school education system through ObamaCore, Americans now understand that Smart Meters could be used by the Obama administration to control our personal lives.  

*To clarify yet one more myth about Smitherman, he has told me that the only time he visited the White House was under President G. W. Bush and that Smitherman has never even met with Obama. 

Barry Smitherman takes STRONG Stand Against Common Core and CSCOPE - Texas Attorney General Race Update

Also see: Texas Conservative Education Hero Donna Garner Endorses Barry Smitherman, Says Ken Paxton Never Publicly Helped Conservatives on SBOE and he Supported Moderates

Texas Attorney General Candidate Barry Smitherman has taken a STRONG stand against CSCOPE and Common Core and Smitherman has vowed to fight it tooth and nail as Texas Attorney General.

Statement from Barry Smitherman regarding Defending Texas from Obama’s Common Core

“As the chief law enforcement officer for the State of Texas, the Attorney General must ensure that the laws of Texas are obeyed and enforced.  

When the Texas legislature passes a bill, in this case HB 462, which forbids Common Core Standards in Texas Schools, then the Attorney General should ensure that Common Core Standards are not utilized by Texas schools.  

We cannot let the enticement of federal dollars cause our school districts to ignore state law.  I have personally reviewed CSCOPE curricula which is extremely biased against fossil fuels; describing, for example, only the “harmful effects” of oil, natural gas, and coal.  The State of Texas is the leading provider of fossil fuels in America, driving our economy forward, lowering energy costs, and eliminating our country’s dependence on fuel from countries that are hostile to America and her ideals.

I have stood strong for Texans by suing the Obama EPA 7 times to stop the implementation of poorly scienced, boneheaded environmental regulations. I will continue to fight for all Texans against an ever encroaching federal government, and as the next Attorney General, I will vigorously defend all of the laws of the state of Texas.” Barry Smitherman

Candidate Ken Paxton, on the other hand, has stated that he does not plan to fight Common Core or CSCOPE as Texas Attorney General

Attorney General Candidate Ken Paxton was asked recently how he, as the Texas Attorney General, would approach Common Core Standards and CSCOPE. Shockingly, Ken Paxton was caught on a recordingresponding, “the Attorney General probably won’t get involved in that.”

This is absurd! Texans have been fighting tooth and nail to stop CSCOPE and Common Core from getting into our public schools, and Ken Paxton, in his own words, says he probably won’t get involved in defending Texas law that bans common core?

Shock Recording: Ken Paxton NOT interested in Stopping Common Core or CSCOPE as Texas Attorney General

Texas Law bans Common Core in Texas Public Schools. The Texas Attorney General plays a very crucial role in defending Texas from Obama’s attempts to break Texas law by getting Common Core into our schools. Attorney General Candidate Ken Paxton was asked recently how he, as the Texas Attorney General, would approach Common Core Standards and CSCOPE. Shockingly, Ken Paxton was caught on a recording responding, “the Attorney General probably won’t get involved in that.”

This is absurd! Texans have been fighting tooth and nail to stop CSCOPE and Common Core from getting into our public schools, and Ken Paxton, in his own words, says he probably won’t get involved in defending Texas law that bans common core?

In comparison, Texas Attorney General Candidate Barry Smitherman has taken a STRONG stand against CSCOPE and Common Core and Smitherman has vowed to fight it tooth and nail as Texas Attorney General. See statement from Barry Smitherman below.

The rest of the article below is a more in depth information from Alice Linahan originally posted at Voices Empower:

Last session, the Texas Legislature passed HB 462 which bans Common Core in our Texas public schools.  The U. S. Dept. of Ed. under Obama has created a work-around in which Race to the Top funds are sent directly to Texas public school districts.  RTTT-D demands that schools implement the Common Core Standards Initiative. Last year Harmony and Idea Charters received the RTTT-D1 funds, and this year Houston ISD and Pasadena ISD are in the running for the RTTT-D2 funds. This puts these schools directly in opposition to Texas law under HB 462. 

Barry Smitherman has issued a strong commitment to uphold Texas laws, including HB 462: 

   

“As the chief law enforcement officer for the State of Texas, the Attorney General must ensure that the laws of Texas are obeyed and enforced.  

When the Texas legislature passes a bill, in this case HB 462, which forbids Common Core Standards in Texas Schools, then the Attorney General should ensure that Common Core Standards are not utilized by Texas schools.  

We cannot let the enticement of federal dollars cause our school districts to ignore state law.  I have personally reviewed CSCOPE curricula which is extremely biased against fossil fuels; describing, for example, only the “harmful effects” of oil, natural gas, and coal.  The State of Texas is the leading provider of fossil fuels in America, driving our economy forward, lowering energy costs, and eliminating our country’s dependence on fuel from countries that are hostile to America and her ideals.

I have stood strong for Texans by suing the Obama EPA 7 times to stop the implementation of poorly scienced, boneheaded environmental regulations. I will continue to fight for all Texans against an ever encroaching federal government, and as the next Attorney General, I will vigorously defend all of the laws of the state of Texas.” Barry Smitherman

 In Contrast AG candidate Ken Paxton states….

At a Q&A session Texas Attorney General candidate Ken Paxton was asked about how he would approach Common Core Standards and CSCOPE. 

“That’s more of a legislative function…The Attorney General probably won’t get too involved in that.”

Here is the recording of Ken Paxton saying this:

Then Paxton referenced “lawsuits” as a reason he would avoid taking action on Common Core Standards/CSCOPE issues.

TEX. ATTORNEY GEN. GREG ABBOTT AND CSCOPE

On May 6, 2013, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott came to the assistance of Texas parents by sending an official letter to TESCCC, the corporate owner of CSCOPE, in which Abbott reminded them of Section 26.006(a) in the Texas Education Code which gives parents the right to review all teaching materials, lessons, etc. that are utilized in their children’s classrooms.  https://www.oag.state.tx.us/oagnews/release.php?id=4394

As stated in the Dallas Morning News on 7.17.13, “Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott is a fierce critic of CSCOPE and has threatened to subpoena its records.”  –http://www.dallasnews.com/news/education/headlines/20130717-texas-criticized-cscope-curriculum-system-may-live-again.ece

COMMON CORE IS A TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL ISSUE – COMMON CORE BANNED BY TEXAS LEGISLATURE FROM TEXAS PUBLIC SCHOOLS – HB 462

Following is a statement sent to Texas public school personnel on 11.7.13 by Texas Commissioner of Education Michael Williams in which he explains the ramifications of HB 462 recently passed by the Texas Legislature:  http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index4.aspx?id=25769808124

As you consider funding opportunities, especially those offered by the United States Department of Education, I want to remind you of the provisions in a new law prohibiting the adoption or use of the Common Core State Standards.

The 83rd Texas Legislature passed House Bill 462 (HB 462), which contains several important prohibitions relating to curriculum standards. The bill:

1.     prohibits the State Board of Education (SBOE) from adopting Common Core State Standards;

2.     prohibits school districts from using Common Core State Standards to meet the requirements to provide instruction in the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS);

3.     prohibits a school district or open enrollment charter school from being required to offer the Common Core; and

4.     prohibits the Texas Education Agency from adopting or developing assessments based on Common Core State Standards.

You may read the full text of HB 462 at: http://www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/83R/billtext/pdf/HB00462F.pdf#navpanes=0.

Obama's Arne Duncan slimes women in Common Core attack - Rep. Stockman Calls for Resignation

the following is a press release I got from Congressman Steve Stockman today:

Stockman asks Obama to fire Duncan over anti-women comments
Obama education secretary says critics are just suburban moms with dumb kids

WASHINGTON -- Congressman Steve Stockman Monday asked President Barack Obama to fire Education Secretary Arne Duncan after comments Friday in which Duncan dismissed opponents of Common Core as suburban moms with dumb kids.

“The Obama administration is now using ‘suburban mom’ as a dismissive slur and even attacking the children of political opponents,” said Stockman. “It’s typical of the Obama administration’s disrespectful treatment of women who express differing opinions. He even called moms and dads with families ‘fringe groups.’”

“If there is a ‘War on Women’ the Obama administration just launched a tactical strike,” said Stockman. “Obama should fire Duncan for saying some opponents of Common Core should be dismissed because of their race and gender.”

“It’s fascinating to me that some of the pushback is coming from, sort of, white suburban moms who — all of a sudden — their child isn’t as brilliant as they thought they were and their school isn’t quite as good as they thought they were, and that’s pretty scary,” Duncan said in a speech Friday in Richmond, Va., addressing the Council of Chief State Schools Officers Organization.

“Common Core is Obamacare for education. It’s a top-down, one-size-fits-all that brings all children down to a common level,” said Stockman. “Opposition comes from men and women of all races who don’t want their children trapped in Common Core’s failure factory.”

Duncan’s remarks were confirmed by Education Department Assistant Secretary for Communications and Outreach Massie Ritsch and reported Saturday by the Washington Post.

“Opposition to Common Core must be led by the states. Texas may not have officially taken Common Core standards, but they did work with the same groups in the writing of the TEKS. Texas needs to kill CScope and reject Race to the Top funding if we are to get Washington mediocrity out of our schools,” said Stockman.

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