Upcoming State Election

It is easy to get distracted by the slow-motion GOP train wreck in Washington. However, we also need to keep our focus on what is happening in Wisconsin. This April, we vote for our State Superintendent of Public Instruction. But first, we have a February 21 state-wide primary to winnow the three-person field to two.

Tony Evers has held the position since 2009. He is one of the few state office holders independent of the Walker/Vos/Fitzgerald crime syndicate. He has been a strong advocate of public schools. I won't go into detail on Evers' long and distinguished service. But I encourage you to read his short editorial in today's Cap Times.

We know what we are getting with Evers. But what about the other two candidates, Lowell Holtz and John Humphries? It is difficult to sort through the edu-speak word salad from these candidates to define their governing philosophies. However, it is clear that both challengers are advocates of school privatization and expanded taxpayer funding of religious schools.

Both candidates would drop Common Core State Standards, because of Obama something, something... Holtz does not say what standards he would replace them with. Probably, each and every district would have to ineptly reinvent the wheel. Humphries would spend years and tons of taxpayer money to develop new, statewide Wisconsin standards- standards that would likely end-up similar to Common Core.

From a look at his campaign website, it apparent that Lowell Holtz is an extreme candidate. He has been endorsed by some of the looniest characters in Madison, including Representatives Andre Jacque, Bob "Gunnin'"Gannon, Tea Party Dan Knodl, and Janel Brandtjen. He is endorsed by former Representative, one-time State Superintendent candidate, and frequent national embarrassment, Don Pridemore.

If you like Betsy DeVos, you would love Holtz. Holtz wasted no time in posting a story on his website celebrating DeVos's confirmation. In describing the least qualified Secretary of Education ever, Holtz said, "Never before has the future of education been placed in the hands of a stronger advocate for personal freedom and school choice..." In a FB post last night, Holtz wrote, "Congratulations to Secretary DeVos on her confirmation by the US Senate today! Her intellect and leadership will serve the expansion and longevity of school choice well in Wisconsin and nationwide." (underline mine)

In an oh-so-clever wink to the extreme base, Holtz calls his website "kidservative.com".

John Humphries is also attempting to garner the conservative vote, although his pitch is a little more subtle. He wants to change the state constitution and weaken the roll of State Superintendent. He would create more bureaucracy through formation of an "Education Accountability Board", whose chair would be named by the governor.

Humphries supports the notorious Darling-Kooyenga plan to gradually privatize Milwaukee schools. He also wants to increase the dollars that taxpayers ship-off to religious and for-profit schools, at the expense of public schools.

According to a September FB entry, Humphries received campaign training by far-right American Majority, a group that organized an "I Stand With Walker" rally in February, 2011. He publicly supports Act 10. He issued a statement supporting the confirmation of spectacularly unqualified Betsy DeVos as Education Secretary, saying the confirmation is a "positive development for the future of America's children."

Tony Evers has shown himself an independent voice that has deflected the worst public school schemes of Scott Walker and his state legislature . He will provide an effective buffer from school privatization efforts by the new Secretary of Education, DeVos. Evers' two opponents will not. I encourage everyone to vote for Tony Evers in both the February 21 primary and the April 4 general election.