Here's a WSJ editorial (I hope you're sitting down) praising Obama for being strong on this and threatening a veto:

Rare is the occasion when President Obama challenges his party's left wing, so the White House deserves credit for standing up to Democratic leaders in Congress who want to roll back his education reforms.

For months, Democrats on Capitol Hill have been trying to appease their teachers union supporters by passing a rich bailout for public education employees. And on the eve of its July 4 recess, the House passed a war-funding bill that includes $10 billion in grants to school districts to avoid teacher layoffs.

However, to win over enough moderate Democrats to pass the bill, House Appropriations Chairman David Obey needed to add less to the budget deficit. So he offset the school grants with $800 million in cuts to several education reform initiatives, including Race to the Top ($500 million), the Teacher Incentive Fund ($200 million) and charter school expansion ($100 million).

The White House reacted by threatening to veto the bill if it includes these reforms. "It would be short-sighted to weaken funding for these reforms just as they begin to show such promise," said a White House statement.

To say that this threat has left Mr. Obey upset is to understate his charms as a legislator…

…The teachers unions want more money and less accountability, which is what they'll get if the Administration's reforms are tossed overboard. And too many Democrats in Congress are all too happy to oblige. Let's hope the White House stands by its veto threat and forces Congress to side with the kids over the adults, for a change.

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