No to Moore and Orr

Hmmm. Maybe I should have listened to the Moore camp when they said that the NCAE endorsement process was merely a charade and that Bev had it all wrapped up. Being the eternal optimist, I diligently worked on my written answers to their lengthy questionnaire and delayed a trip to the mountains to attend their Saturday morning hour long interview with the gubernatorial candidates (except Bill who stayed home). I confess that I've been endorsed in judicial races by the NCAE 3 out of 5 times and have felt that I had a positive relationship with their leadership. So I thought maybe they'd be willing to endorse in both primaries - wrong. After what I felt was a very good session answering questions in front of the group, I took it in the back of the head as I traveled west on Saturday.

Now I really didn't think I'd get endorsed over Bev, the darling of the NCAE but I really did believe that they should also endorse in the GOP primary. After all as I told them, what about the approximately 30 per cent of their membership who are registered Republicans. Yes, Virginia, there are teachers who are registered as Republicans and vote that way. By doing just what the Moore camp predicted, the NCAE appears to have "cooked the books" and to have once again fallen into the public perception that they are merely a tool of the Democratic Party. But, alas, that's exactly what they did and now all those teachers across the state will not have the benefit of a real debate about the future of education and I predict will rarely see the Lt. Governor who now has that vote locked up. Once again the political gurus of the NCAE missed the boat. Too bad for the teachers.