If you were compiling a list of Oklahoma lawmakers who would be the happiest to see Oklahoma public schools destroyed and burned to the ground, Derplahoman State Senator and US Senate Candidate Nathan Dahm would have to rank near the top.
A proud homeschooler, the Broken Arrow sweater-puff is a backer and supporter of any and all proposed laws that are anti-education, anti-teacher, and anti-common sense. In fact, he's even written bills that would do things like give students public money to attend the private school of their choice.
Knowing that, you'd think Nathan Dahm would have been first-in-line last night to cast a vote in favor of the "Sabotage Oklahoma Public School Funding Empowerment Act."...
Similar to Dahm's bill, it would take state funds allocated for a student, which is about $3,000 a pop, and put them into a savings account that their parents could access to pay for private school.
The bill has been pretty controversial at the capitol, pitting anti-public education "big city" Republicans who want taxpayers to subsidize private education against A) Democrats and B) Anti-public school "rural" Republicans who live in districts that don't have any private schools to choose from, and as a result, would rather just begrudgingly fund public education instead.
Anyway, the Senate held its first vote on the measure last night and it felt just two votes shy of passing. That's partly because two Senators, including cowardly Nathan Dahm, didn't vote on the measure.
Via Public Radio Tulsa:
A school voucher bill narrowly failed late Wednesday night after hours of debate and lobbying from lawmakers.
Senate Bill 1647 went down on the Senate floor after it failed to garner 25 votes to pass through the chamber to the House. Instead it got 22 votes in favor and 24 opposed.
In a dramatic turn late Wednesday night, the vote was left open for lawmakers to change their minds for almost two hours. Several lawmakers changed their votes over the course of that time. However, the measure never had enough in favor to get over the finish line...
Absent was Tulsa Republican Nathan Dahm, who was reportedly hosting a Washington D.C. fundraiser in his bid to replace US Senator Jim Inhofe at the time of the vote.
Dahm had voted in favor of the measure in committee.
Wow. Is nothing sacred anymore?
Say what you want about Nathan Dahm, but at least he was authentic. You could always count on him to stand up and fight for all the crazy issues and causes he believed in, regardless of how stupid, unpopular or deranged those causes may be.
But now that he's a hotshot running for US Senate, Dahms's fine taking the safe, boring, and incredibly weak approach to politics and avoiding picking sides in a contentious issue because of how it may affect his future political aspirations. Basically, he's become the RINO politician and soft snowflake liberal that he's always rallied against. What a shame.
Of course, I guess there's always a chance for Dahm to rectify himself. I'd bet a Kohl's sweater that the Oklahoma political machine finds a way to revive this bill, and Dahm get another chance to demonstrate his resolute desire to sabotage public education. Will he stand up for what's "right," and thus technically wrong, or will he once again take the cowardly approach, and conveniently be out of town.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We'll keep you advised.
