Abbott Contradicts Himself on Vouchers
and Takes Personal Shots at Democrats
Capitol Inside
February 14, 2025
Governor Greg Abbott
raised the specter on Friday that he's scared about the prospects for yet another failure on his signature priority when he hurled insults at Democrats who'd accused him of siphoning funds from public education to foot the bill for private school subsidies.
After claiming to have the votes to pass a school choice plan in the Texas House as the perennial burial ground on the issue, Abbott could be worried that a measure could die in a conference committee as a consequence of differences that could be irreconcilable between the Senate and the House.
The Republican governor showed that the Democrats hit a nerve when he took personal shots at State Rep. Mary Gonzalez of Clint and former campaign foe Beto O'Rourke on Friday after lashing out the day before at Austin State Reps. Gina Hinojosa and Vikki Goodwin.
Abbott branded Gonzalez as a "fake doctor" in an apparent reference to a doctorate degree. The governor berated O'Rourke as a "repeat loser" after the former congressman and gubernatorial nominee seized on Abbott's own words
from earlier in the week when he accidentally admitted on social media that public schools would lose funding if his school choice plan becomes law.
“When they leave, the funding for that child leaves too,” Abbott said in a social media post. "Democrats want to FORCE families to stay in government mandated schools against their will.”
O'Rourke pounced on the statement. "Even Abbott admits it: Texas public schools will LOSE money thanks to this ridiculous voucher scheme," O'Rourke said in a post on X complete with a copy of a Houston Chronicle report to substantiate the claim. "Fewer teachers, more school closures, MORE property taxes as districts struggle to make ends meet."
Hinojosa appeared to set the trap initially on Wednesday when she post a link on X to a site where Texans could go to determine how a school vouchers measure would affect funding for their local public schools. Abbott sought to impugn the Democratic lawmaker's credibility instead of making an effort to defend the proposal on its merits.
"Can we really trust the former head of the woke Austin school board to give us the facts about our children’s education?" Abbott said. Hinojosa's father led the Democratic Party in Texas as the state chairman here for 12 years until stepping down in 2024. The younger Hinojosa is a lawyer in her fifth House term.
Gonzalez touted the dontdefundmyschool.com
in a post on X on Thursday. Gonzalez included a graphic with a warning that a school vouchers proposal would drain as much as $63 million from nine school districts in the El Paso area where she's been a state representative for the past 12 years.
"In the face of school voucher legislation we must fight to keep our public schools open and fully funded," Gonzalez wrote. "Texas schools are strained, but vouchers are not the answer."
Abbott fired back with a venom. "As a fake doctor, I could understand your confusion. Here’s the real math: More than $5 billion in new funding for public education this year More than $6 billion in new funding last session — P.S. you voted for it."
Gonzalez earned a Phd in education at the University of Texas in Austin where the governor received an undergraduate degree.
Abbott didn't attempt to clarify or correct his own statement about public schools losing state funds with students who leave for private educations. But he emphatically denied that it would happen in a post today.
"Don’t believe the lies—Education Savings Accounts do NOT take a single dollar from public schools," Abbott asserted. "They are funded entirely through state revenue separate from public education. Parents matter, and it’s time Texas gives them the right to choose what’s best for their kids."
more to come ...
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