NM legislator writes worst “news” article you’ll see today

The Rio Grande Foundation has been very active in pushing Gov. Lujan Grisham to sign onto the $1,700 federal school choice tax credit contained in the federal “Big Beautiful Bill.” You can click here to read our post on that AND send the Gov. a note asking her to include New Mexico in the program. The Gov. after initially rejecting the plan has since insisted that she’ll make a decision once the regulations are written. That could take some time, but ultimately she’ll need to make a final decision before leaving office. You can see our recent writing with links to others here, but Democrat Rep. Raymundo (Rocky) Lara just had the weakest possible article published in the Santa Fe New Mexican attempting to convince MLG NOT to get New Mexico into the program.

Here’s the crux of his argument:

1. We don’t want “a fragmented system where funding is driven by individual preference rather than student need.” Simply put, why? “Individual preference” gets us what we want when it comes to food, cars, and housing. Why can’t that work in education. Oh, and New Mexico kids are suffering in the WORST schools in the NATION!
2. “In New Mexico, we have worked deliberately to build a funding system that prioritizes fairness.” Yes, that same system has given everyone access to the worst education system in the nation.
3. “They (public schools) are accountable to the communities they serve. How so?” The Yazzie v. Martinez case was decided because New Mexico’s schools were considered “inadequate.” The “solution” was to pour more money into the schools while students have fled the biggest district in New Mexico and the State’s schools as a whole. Shouldn’t “accountability” empower families rather than forcing them to home school, leave New Mexico, or pay (twice) for private school?