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Demanding that certain basic standards be met is a good thing. While Romney is generally supportive of Bush on this (as was Fred), he is pushing for more local control of those standards as well. The best of both worlds.

Governor Romney: "We all want to be successful based on our rhetoric, not actual, measurable results, and I'm afraid that in the world marketplace, our kids are only going to be successful based on their performance, and that requires measurement. I think the president was right to insist on measurement. I think the measurements themselves have a long way to be perfected, and a lot of room for improvement."

Romney called for "greater state flexibility in the (student) testing process."

Romney called for "greater state flexibility in the (student) testing process."

Fred scores a little better than Mitt on this in my book. The difference isn't great but I don't want someone to "fix" it, I want it eliminated. Next best solution is to whittle away at it.

I am a longtime education activist. Bond drives, school board, regional education board member, testimony before state board and alliance with conservative state board members, etc. Here at FR, a foe of NCLB under Xlinton and under Bush.

This is a good litmus issue in many respects. How a candidate stands on this issue means a lot to homeschoolers and conservative education activists. Years back at FR, this issue was held to be of fundamental importance in blocking the advance of socialist policy. It still is but many FReepers are so focused on the war in Iraq that they ignore the advance of socialism at home.

One of the reasons I support Ron Paul foremost is because he and Hyde defeated this under Xlinton. If one of these candidates want to stand out from the GOP pack, they need to show me that they don't favor yet another expansion of these unconstitutional programs that intrude into local government and education.

I'll keep watching the candidates but this is a very important issue to me personally because it is such a bellwether on how a candidate stands on so many other issues. If we can't win these smaller issues on state and local control, we have no hope of turning back the tide of socialism.