WHO OWNS EDUCATION?

This is a sidenote to a very good Ross Douthat post on a somewhat related topic, but he worries that on education policy, "the most interesting arguments are between liberal reformers and liberal interest groups, with conservatives sitting on the sideline talking about vouchers and occasionally praising the Michelle Rhees and Corey Bookers of the world." True enough, but I'm not sure it's the sort of thing Republicans can really fix. Education is a fundamentally local issue. And the most consequential battles in education policy are being waged at the point of maximum dysfunction: Urban schools. And urban schools tend to be in urban centers, most of which are incredibly hostile to Republicans. Rhee is in DC and Booker in Newark, and the demographics of both cities make continued Democratic a near-certainty. Conversely, on the national level, which is friendlier to Republicans, it was Bush who pushed through the most significant education reform in recent decades, and it's Democrats who are worrying that they've lost momentum on the topic.