Hmmm…In recent years the National Education Association ranked fourth among all entities contributing to national campaigns.

Hmmm…Candidates prattle on about throwing more money at the current educational status quo.

Meanwhile, the U.S. now lags behind Poland in international test results. And Finland, Sweden, and Canada are making educational strides because they’ve adopted strong systems of school choice.

How this losing proposition came about cannot be revisited enough. According to Paul Peterson:

Around 1970 or thereabouts, the educational-industrial complex was hammered into place: School boards gave teachers collective bargaining rights. State governments assumed greater responsibility for financing the schools. The courts instructed schools on the civil liberties of their students. Regulations multiplied. America gained a federal Department of Education. And state and federal dollars poured into the system.

Will any presidential candidate take on the education-industrial complex? Hope springs eternal, despite the monetary quid pro quo locked in place.