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There has been a constant assault on public
education systems

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here in Texas in the past couple of sessions.

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There's been a recent push for this thing
called ESAs

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or the school voucher program, but you must
understand that

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every school voucher that is used will take
money out

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of public funding and instead put that into
private schools.

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We in Texas have a massive, massive surplus
right now.

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We are bloated in the pockets.

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You know, we can spend additional money on our
roads,

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we can spend it on an infrastructure.

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We can actually, if you really want to have
school

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choice, we can take our massive surplus and
give some

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money to the private schools.

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However, that is not the voucher program that
has been

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proposed by the Republicans in the past couple
of sessions.

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Instead, their ESA vouchers would take money
and sacrifice public

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money, public school funding, and instead give
that to private

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schools.

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This in a situation where we've already are
experiencing losses.

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We've experienced a 40% loss of our school
staff in

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the past two years, mainly due to underpaying
our school

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teachers and staff and burnout.

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A lot of people blamed politics as well on
this.

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School teachers are not being treated with
respect that the

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way that they should, especially ever since
the pandemic.

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What we need to do is we need to support

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our public education system, not put this
final nail in

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the coffin, which is what the ESA or school
voucher

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program would be.

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I understand that it's tempting as a parent to
have

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air quotes school choice.

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But that choice, school choice, as they call
it, the

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school choice program takes the public school
option away from

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those parents who do like their public
schools.

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So it's hypocritical to call a school choice
program school

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choice when you're taking the choice of public
school away

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from parents and hurts the parents in rural
communities the

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most.

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Because if you live in the big city, hey, you

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might have a couple of private schools around
you, maybe

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you have some options, but if you live out in

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rural areas, how close is the closest private
school going

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to be to you?

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And goodness knows if your kid's even going to
be

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accepted into that.

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These private schools, they don't accept every
single child into

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their schools.

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No, no.

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They all have entry exams.

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entry exams If your kid doesn't do well enough
on

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these, they don't get let in.

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So if your kid has any mental disability at
all,

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then you are SOL

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But you know, if your kid is an athlete and

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does a really good job at that, you are in

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luck.

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Then again, I hope your kid doesn't break
their leg

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because you know these private schools, they
can kick their

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kid out anytime they want because they're
private institutions, after

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all.

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And if we defund our public schools in order
to

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support these private schools, if goodness
forbid you wind up

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not liking the private school option after
all, what are

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you gonna go back to?

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It's not like you can go back to public
schooling

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because after all, we just defunded them with
the school

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voucher program.

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That's why this is so absolutely dangerous and
detrimental to

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the public education in Texas.

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And by the way, it's not just Democrats, it's
rural

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Republicans as well.

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Rural Republicans will get hit the worst by
this, which

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is why in the Texas State House, the school
voucher

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program has been consistently shot down.

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Because it's only the city Republicans that
are on board

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with this.

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Keep in mind in Texas, Republicans dominate
the state house,

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they dominate the state senate, and the
Republican is a

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governor.

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So Republicans run the show, but this school
voucher program

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is so, so absolutely not popular, even with
the Republicans

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in control, they just can't get this past the
state

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house.

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They're only able to get it past the Senate,
and

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that's it.

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Now, at this point, you're probably wondering,
well, then why

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is there even a push for this?

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Why does Governor Abbott all of a sudden want
to

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push for this legislation?

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Make all these special sessions?

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Well, it's actually not really him.

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Here's something that you may or may not know.

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There are two Texas billionaires who run the
show in

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the GOP state of Texas.

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Their names are Tim Dunn and Ferris Wilkes.

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They're billionaires.

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They are not just Christian nationalists.

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They are, in fact, Seven Mountain Dominionists

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Seven Mountain Dominionism, for those who
don't know, is a

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subsect of Christian nationalism.

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With the Seven Mountain system, they believe
there's the Seven

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Mountains or seven pillars of everything that
must be dominated

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or dominated in order for the second coming of
Jesus

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Christ to come to Earth.

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They believe that the second coming of Jesus
Christ of

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Nazareth, their Lord and Savior, is put on
pause until

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these seven mountains are dominionated.

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But what's more problematic about these two
guys is they're

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billionaires in Texas.

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They are spending a lot of money, particularly
in school

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board races.

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They really truly are believers.

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They've drinking the Kool-Aid and they're
willing to spend their

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millions and millions and millions of dollars
to influence politics

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here in Texas.

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Hey, don't take my word for it.

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Here's a State House representative talking
about Tim Dunn and

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Ferris Wilkes and their crazy ideologies and
theology that they

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believe in.

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They say climate change is God's will.

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They compare homosexuality to bestiality and
pedophilia.

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They think only Christians have a right to
serve in

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public office.

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In fact, they told the former Republican
Speaker of the

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Texas House, Joe Strauss, that he didn't have
a right

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to serve as Speaker because he's Jewish.

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But the scariest part is that they are turning
their

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toxic theology into law.

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Dunn and Wilkes have already poured more than
a hundred

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million dollars into our politics.

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According to those close to Dun and Wilkes,
their ultimate

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goal is to replace public education with
private Christian schooling.

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Republican state Senator Bob Duell said they
want to destroy

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the public school system.

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Now they're taking their final step.

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Defunding our neighborhood schools with a
vou.cher scam

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Dunn and Wilkes are an existential threat to
the project

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of public education and therefore to the
project of democracy.

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We have to stop them.

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The influence of Tim Dunn and Ferris Wilkes
spreads wide.

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Here's another example of the TX ledge just
wanting to

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give a slight constant living adjustment or as
pay increase

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to school teachers.

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Now watch this get shot down hard by one of

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the most conservative, most insane right-wing
Republicans that we have

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in the House, a man named Jared Patterson of
HD

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106.

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Earlier this session, um there was a press
conference that

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I believe every member of your caucus likely
attended, talking

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about a $15,000 pay raise for teachers.

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And I notice that your amendment has a $10,000
pay

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raise for teachers.

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Are you saying that teachers aren't worth that
extra $5,000

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that y'all had were in this room just two
months

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ago talking about?

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No, sir.

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We we did that on purpose.

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So this is your opportunity to bring an
amendment to

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the amendment.

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You want to join me?

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$15,000?

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Let's do it.

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I'll put my signature down if you put your
down.

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Would you do 30,000 for teachers?

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Yeah, let's do that.

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Let's do that.

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Yeah.

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Would you like 30,000?

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You want to you want to be a big boy?

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Let's do it.

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Would you I'll just I'll delay.

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Would you do 30,000?

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Do you need how much time do you need?

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Would you do 30,000 for teachers?

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Hey, are you gonna sign it?

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For 40,000?

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Are you gonna sign it?

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Jeep seats, man.

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Come on.

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Let's go.

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No, we'll just vote it down.

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Thank you.

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Have a good day.

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Thank you for not caring about teachers.

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Look, everyone here who really knows what's
going on knows

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that the school voucher program is
detrimental.

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It doesn't help public schools, it destroys
them.

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Here's another school voucher supporter on
C-SPAN, even getting called

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out on that.

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Just because. you say school choice doesn't
mean your child's

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going to get into that charter school or
magnet school

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It depends on the board of directors and what
they

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want.

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They want that public money for the first two
or

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three years, but then after that, now there's
a lottery

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system for this high school.

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They pick and choose now who comes to that
school

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now.

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If you're a good athlete from another school,
you get

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in trouble.

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So bingo, you're gonna get in.

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David, let's get a response.

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And and David, if you're in education, try to
make

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your question a little bit sharper.

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But you're right, there is a difference, and
not every

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student can get into every school.

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I'm Dale Frey, and I'm running for the Texas
State

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Senate.

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The reason I'm running for the Senate is
because right

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now, as it stands, the Texas State House is
the

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only chamber that's supporting our public
school teachers right now.

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They're the only thing that is stopping the
ESA program,

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the school vouchers from completely destroying
our public schools.

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We need to have state senators who support our
teachers.

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Because right now, the Senate's not doing
that.

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The state senate in Texas is the one that is

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passing this legislation in order to destroy
our public schools.

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Thank God the House says no.

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But we don't know how long the House can hold

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on.

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What we need to do is we need to have

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Texas state senators who support our public
schools.

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I'm Dale Freight running for the Texas State
Senate, and

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I wholeheartedly support public school
teachers.