This page is an undergraduate assignment at Davidson College

Colorado Education Reform

Positions:

Salazar:

• Wants complete federal funding of the No Child Left Behind law.
• "Ensuring that our public schools provide a quality education is the key to making America a better place" (www.salazarforcolorado.com) .
• The price is $9.4 billion in 2005 (Couch) .

Coors:

• Coors’ campaign is based on party identification instead of on own policy stances.
• Policy based on broad generalizations
• Coors' website is vague. This can be contrasted to Salazar's website which is loaded with data
• Does not want to spend any more money on NCLB.
• Believes that education is best dealt with at the local level: no need for a nationwide tax increase.
• In contrast to Salazar: supports voucher programs (Couch).
• Puts pressure on the teachers union instead of national government

Representation:

• In the short term both candidates are representing their core constituents substantively along party lines.
• Demographic information shows that the areas needing more NCLB funding tend to be more Democratic, and areas needing less NCLB funding tend to be more Republican. 

Salazar:

• Salazar has not limited himself to his core constituents: has a broader appeal:
• He mainly represents:
• Minorities and low income families in districts where there is little money to help local governments implement reform.
• May be acting against the feelings of some Coloradoans, but believes he is doing what is best for the country.
• Republican voters may not like the price of education reform, but in the long run the negatives of increased welfare and crime can be reduced.

Coors:

• “Every member has some idea of the people most likely to join his reelection constituency…these people will often be targeted” (Fenno).
• Republican voters are essential.
• Stays away from descriptive representation and focuses more on the symbolic.
• Represents core constituents who see reform as a burden:
• Elderly- who have little interest in increasing taxes for children that aren’t their own.
• Upper Classes- who can afford better education for their own children and do not want to have to pay for other people’s problems.

Evaluation:

• Who is doing a better job representing the interests of Colorado?
• Both have immediate short term results, but only Salazar brings long term benefits to Colorado.

Salazar:

• Strongly representing the interests of Colorado as a whole: not just party identification.
• NCLB brings better education immediately for the disadvantaged, but can help all Coloradoans by reducing the need to spend more later.
• If the National Government follows through with Federal funding this plan could have huge potential for Colorado.

Coors:

• Failing to represent Colorado constituents’ interests on a broad level.
• Focus on the national scale may have its benefits, but Coors’ concentration on sticking to party standards may hurt his campaign.

Works Cited

Honor Code

Part of an Assignment for:
POL 318

© Davidson College, 2004, Department of Political Science, Davidson College, Davidson, NC 28035
Created by Laura E. Noyes (lanoyes@davidson.edu)

Created: 9/10/04. Last updated: 10/14/04.