WHAT THEY’RE WATCHING: Hinojosa Calls Out Abbott for Abandoning Texas Public Schools

Hinojosa on Inside Politics: “I have MAGA moms standing with me in support of this effort. It’s what we all want, a back-to-basics approach.” 

Dallas, TX – Last week, Gina Hinojosa joined Lone Star Politics, Eye on Politics, and Inside Texas Politics to discuss how Greg Abbott’s corruption is deteriorating Texas public schools and the launch of Team Texas Public Schools, a new bipartisan organizing program designed to engage communities to fight to save Texas public schools.

“I first ran for office because my own son’s school was shutting down,” Hinojosa told CBS Texas. “That is the experience of millions of Texans right now, despite the fact that our property taxes have gone up 75% under Greg Abbott. We pay more, we get less.”

In conversation with NBC 5, Hinojosa said Texas public schools have been “losing ground in the last ten years under Greg Abbott and [TEA Commissioner] Mike Morath” compared to national standards. 

Team Texas Public Schools, Hinojosa added, “is organizing to get out the vote for those of us who love our public schools and are ready to defend them and fight for them. I encounter that amongst Republicans, amongst people who see the deterioration [of public schools] under Greg Abbott, who are ready to take a stand. It is targeting a different population of voters, voters who are concerned in a big way with public schools.”

See more below.

NBC DFW:  Lone Star Politics: Texas Rep. Gina Hinojosa aims to take on Gov. Abbott on education issues

WATCH HERE

  • “You cannot have the American dream without strong public schools. Public schools are the gateway. They are the opportunity to the American dream and our public schools are on life support right now.”
  • “Over 100 schools are shutting down in Texas. Over 150 school districts are operating four days a week because they cannot afford to operate at five days a week. Teachers have walked away from the classroom in droves because Greg Abbott has walked away from our Texas public schools. We have had cuts all over in our schools, [from] personnel to programs.”
  • “Dallas ISD is getting about 70 million dollars less than the legislature approved for them in the school finance bill last session because Greg Abbott’s Texas Education Agency unilaterally decided to recalculate what Dallas ISD would get. And now, the 70 million it was expecting has gone.”
  • “I would fire Mike Morath, who is the Texas Education Agency Commissioner. Under his leadership, we have lost ground in our public schools. We need to put an educator in that position; our kids deserve that much.”

CBS Texas: Eye on Politics: Gina Hinojosa Pushes Education as a Campaign Issue In Race for Governor

WATCH HERE

  • “I first ran for office because my own son’s school was shutting down. That is the experience of millions of Texans right now, despite the fact that our property taxes have gone up 75% under Greg Abbott. We pay more, we get less.”
  • “It is organizing to get out the vote for those of us who love our public schools and are ready to defend them and fight for them. I encounter that amongst Republicans. I encounter that amongst just people who see what has happened to the public schools and the deterioration under Greg Abbott, who are ready to take a stand. It is targeting a different population of voters, voters who are concerned in a big way with public schools.”

WFAA: Inside Texas Politics: Rep. Gina Hinojosa on the state of public education in Texas

WATCH HERE

  • “I will say what I’ve seen over the last 10 years is that it’s just been cut after cut, attack after attack on our public schools, and I do not see our public schools surviving another 4 years under Greg Abbott. He doesn’t support our public schools. He works against them, and I’m running to fight for our Texas public schools.”
  • “Our taxes have gone up 75% under Greg Abbott, yet schools are shutting down. We pay more, we get less. We’re all paying the Greg Abbott Corruption Tax.”
  • “We need to wipe clean the corrupt vendor contracts, use that money to invest in the classroom, to pay our teachers to be amongst the highest paid in the nation. I filed that bill. Last session, I had MAGA moms standing with me in support of this effort. It’s what we all want, a back-to-basics approach.”
  • “The governor, remember, came against Republican legislators and put money in against them in their own primary, a historic first when they would not support his voucher scam. They fear him. And so often they’re not able to vote for their districts, much less their conscience, because of this fear. Removing Greg Abbott creates freedom and space for us.”

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