* Gov. Pat Quinn sent out a press release late yesterday to announce that he was heeding President Barack Obama’s call to raise the school drop-out age to 18…
Gov. Pat Quinn today announced his support for raising the minimum attendance age of students in Illinois schools to age 18.
As part of his ongoing commitment to reform education in Illinois, Quinn said he will propose legislation to the general assembly during the annual State of the State address next week to achieve this goal this year. By answering President Barack Obama’s State of the Union call for states to encourage students to complete their high school education by age 18, the governor said he is taking another step to improve education in Illinois.
“Every child in Illinois deserves a quality education that will serve them throughout their lives,” Quinn said. “The best way to ensure that our children have the chance to achieve and succeed is to make sure they stay in school long enough to earn their diploma.”
With a current minimum dropout age of 17, Illinois is one of 29 states that allow students to drop out of school before they turn 18. President Obama said in his address, when students are not allowed to walk away from school, they are more likely to walk across the stage to receive their high school degree. Research shows that increased educational achievement is not only positively linked to higher lifetime earning potential and stronger economies, but also to lower crime rates.
Quinn said under his proposal, Illinois will take another step toward the goal of increasing the state high school graduation rate. He said, as a result, more students will be better prepared for college or to join the workforce, which will help create jobs and strengthen Illinois’ economy for the future.
Quinn said Republicans need to put politics aside and work with the president.
“Some of the Republicans need to work with the president for the good of the national economy,” he said.
Quinn cited the payroll tax cut, which will expire in February. In December, some members of the GOP House revolted against a temporary extension of the tax cut, arguing that a full year deal should be negotiated before members left for the holiday.
The Democratic Governors Association is meeting in New York this week. Quinn is the group’s chief fundraiser.
* But all did not go smoothly for Quinn on the cable show…
[Quinn] he couldn’t steer clear of the narrative that he raised taxes on all Illinoisans, then let a few big companies off the hook when they threatened to leave.
That was essentially how host Joe Scarborough framed the issue, asking whether Quinn’s administration was going to bow to Republican pressure to scale back the 67-percent income tax hike the state imposed last year as it struggled with a crushing budget deficit.
“No, we’re not,” Quinn answered, then veered into what the state is doing to invest in new manufacturing jobs. Scarborough pressed back at the tax point—politely, but still—asking if it was fair to say that Quinn gave “big corporations sweetheart deals” in last month’s targeted tax rollback
“I don’t think it’s fair at all” to put it that way, Quinn answered.
The video isn’t online yet. I’ll try to update the post when the vid becomes available.
* Once again, let’s make sure to keep DC bumper-sticker slogans out of comments. There are plenty of websites where you can go all hyperpartisan in comments. This is not one of them. First and final warning.
