Democratic State Senators to Texas SBOE Chairman McLeroy: Take a Hike

Falling right along party lines Perry appointee Dr. Don McLeroy, dentist turned crusading evangelical chairman of the Texas State Board of Education, was tossed out of his chairman’s spot today in the Texas Senate.

The vote was 19 for, 11 against, and one abstaining (Lucio, D - Brownsville). You need a 2/3ds vote in the Senate to confirm any Perry nomination. The 19, all Republicans who more than likely voted to confirm in order to avoid embarrassing Perry than because they thought McLeroy was doing a heckuva job. That’s my take on it anyway.

The 11, all Democrats.

On McLeroy’s stewardship over the state school board, State Sen. Kirk Watson, D – Austin, had this to say:

“Education is far too important to be little more than a front in an ideological, political and cultural battle. Leaders must lead and Dr. McLeroy has proven conclusively that he is less concerned with leading the board than he is with fighting the battle.”

I’ll say. This guy is 100% responsible for hundreds of hours of wasted time and treasure as he tried to push his radical religious agenda on 4.7 million public school children. Radical in that only a rabid fringe element among the religious actually buy into young Earth creationism.

Don McLeroy has, and wants it taught in science classes in public schools.

What a nitwit.

That’s right, I join a whole host of others in engaging in name-calling.

McLeroy’s defender, State Sen. Steve Ogden, R – Bryan, was apparently offended that people thought McLeroy was a nitwit, or worse, and voiced that opinion:

“There is a certain amount of innuendo in the criticism of Dr. McLeroy To a certain degree it’s a slur.”

Right you are, Senator. A well-deserved slur.

Perry now has to nominate someone to replace ol’ Don. Someone who will be able to head up the school board until 2011 when the next legislature convenes to confirm him or her. My money is on Cynthia Dunbar. Who represents my district.

Cynthia Dunbar, a lawyer who home schools her children, is every bit the creationist that McLeroy is, but is less devious and more naively open about where she stands.

So this should be even more fun.

Dunbar is up for re-election next year, and the word is that unlike her last election she will be opposed in next year’s election.

As the school board turns its attention from the science to the social studies curriculum I have to wonder what Dunbar and the other right wing zealots on the board have up their sleeves.

Like maybe who REALLY started the Civil War and does the US Constitution specifically order the separation of Church and State.