NCSEN: The BIG FAT education spending LIE | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: Brant Clifton expresses his beliefs pursuant to North Carolina's education system in his "bare knuckles" Conservative online publication known as The Daily Haymaker.

    I believe South Carolina congressman Joe Wilson would like to have a word with the Hagan campaign, state and national Democrats, and their lackeys in the drive-by media.

    We're getting bombarded daily with ads from national and state Democrats, as well as from Madame Sock Puppet herself, about Thom Tillis and those mean ol' Republicans in the legislature cutting education and hurting the lil' chil'ren. I know this may come as a shock, but there is an awful lot in those ads that simply isn't true.

    First, let's slap down — one more time — that bull about how student performance hinges on how much money you spend. Studies like THIS and THIS prove that there is little to no correlation between how much you spend and how well students perform. THIS ONE shows that skyrocketing government expenditures on "education" have had little effect on student performance in math, science, and reading. Even a George Soros-funded think tank adsockhurtmits that there is little connection between per-pupil spending and the quality of a school system.

    Now, let's look at the thesis behind all of those ads blasting the Republicans in Raleigh for "education cuts." First, let's look at this internal document from Moore County Public Schools that keeps talking about decisions they were making due to "increased state and federal funding." Wait. *I thought those mean old Republicans CUT funding for education ????*

    There's also this very helpful spreadsheet produced by the educrats at the Moore County Public Schools central office. State spending on education dropped dramatically from FY 08-09 to FY 09-10. (I believe the Democrat Party controlled the governor's office AND Jones Street at that time.) There was a slight increase in state spending from 09-10 to 10-11. State spending on education increased substantially in 11-12 (the first session of GOP control at the NCGA) and continued to rise in 12-13. Moore County was slated for an overall $300,000 increase from the state for 13-14. * I am STILL not seeing those cuts the Democrats are screaming about.*

    In fact, from FY08-09 to FY 11-12, the school system was pulling in MORE MONEY than it could actually spend!

    Granted, this is just one out of roughly 100 systems throughout the state. But, I imagine it is probably quite typical. It's pretty clear — from looking at this documentation — that the money problem is not originating from Jones Street. It appears to be rooted in the bureaucracies at DPI and at the central offices scattered across the state. The pot of money is growing each year. It appears that some questionable spending decisions are being made at the local level.

    Look at your local school board. Are they loading up on political hacks at the central office, while making teachers foot the bill for their own classroom supplies? Are your local educrats holding a lot of money hostage within the central office that really needs to be poured into the classroom? Methinks the true culprits in the education money dilemma are getting too much of a free pass here. I am not a big fan of pouring money into a government leviathan. I am, however, a fan of the truth being told. And, right now, — in this election campaign – -there is very little being told.