Campaign K-12 Notebook
Alaska Budget for Spec. Ed. Draws Scrutiny
How much money one state spends on special education is an unlikely focus of controversy in a presidential race. But when a previously little-known governor makes a splash as the mother of a special-needs child after getting her party’s vice presidential nod, that seemingly parochial topic can suddenly make news.
In accepting the No. 2 spot on the GOP ticket, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska—whose youngest child has Down syndrome—made an explicit appeal to families of children with disabilities in her speech to the Republican National Convention. ( "McCain Promises to 'Shake Up' Schools," Sept. 10, 2008.)
Soon after the Sept. 3 speech ended, a rumor started zipping around the Internet that the first-term governor had cut her state’s spending for special education by 62 percent. As the charge was repeated from blog to blog, the implication was that Ms. Palin was being hypocritical in pledging to be a White House “friend and...
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