Hope for me, but not for thee

Cross posted on Capital Domes.

It seems Washington, D.C., is atwitter over President-elect Barack Obama's first major decision. No, it's not which cabinet post Hillary will get. He and Michelle are deliberating over which of the Capitol's posh private schools (Georgetown Day School, Maret and Sidwell Friends) their daughters, Malia and Sasha, should attend.

Ironically, Obama's ability to ensure hope for his children's future by sending them to private school is a luxury coveted by his most loyal constituency -- inner-city blacks -- but which he has no intention of giving them. Like most modern liberals in his party, Obama is deeply loyal to the teachers unions which spent untold sums of money aiding his election.

During the race with McCain, Obama said of his opponent's support of school choice, "[w]hat he's offering amounts to little more than the same tired rhetoric about vouchers."

What Obama conveniently left out is that he takes full advantage of school choice by enrolling his daughters in a private school that costs approximately $20,000 a year for middle-school students.

Obama is not alone in his hypocrisy over school choice. Many members of Congress choose to send their children to private schools, according to a yearly survey by The Heritage Foundation, while denying those same opportunities to low-income families.

Allowing poor and middle-class children to join the wealthy in getting the foundation necessary for success in the globally competitive economy of the 21st century -- that's change we can believe in. Taking marching orders from the union bosses who contributed to your campaign -- that's an empty suit.

UPDATE: The Washington Post has an editorial call for Obama to support DC school choice - for others that is (HT to Heritage Foundation).