On Welfare Reform vs. School Reform

A friend with a comment on the difference between welfare reform and school reform:

Before we get too poetic about Bill Clinton's political courage, we should remember that welfare recipients were and remain politically toothless.  By the time Clinton came along, few could ignore that the welfare system was associated with a disastrous cycle of poverty, and there was no $2 billion-a-year National Welfare Recipients Association to fight back.

 

What will it take for even the most daring politician to defy the NEA?  My guess is it will take two things:  1) folks like Dems for Ed Reform have to make it clear to the public that our public ed system is also associated with a disastrous cycle of poverty, and 2) the NEA voice has to be neutralized by public mistrust.