Murphy Takes on War, School Testing

After spending the Congressional recess back home, freshman Rep. Chris Murphy (D-5) said, "I actually worked harder during the break than I do down here in Washington."

The war in Iraq continues to dominate the capital. Murphy’s Town Hall meeting with constituents in Washington, Conn., on Feb. 23 suggested that the war is the top topic back home, too.

"People are very clear about where they stand on the war," he said. "There were a few dissenting voices, people who still support the president, but not many."

The House will vote in the next few weeks on an Emergency Appropriation Request from the administration — the funding for the war. Murphy said that members are anxious to define "significant parameters" for the conduct of the war, but are wary of trying to micromanage it.

"We have to be careful not to get too tricky. The approach shouldn’t be so complicated as to obfuscate the ultimate goal: to get our troops out of refereeing a civil war, and redeploy them to fights that still matter."

Asked about the hyperbole that surrounds the debate, he bristled a bit. "The notion that any member would vote to cut off money for the troops is ridiculous. You’ll find the members most critical of the war are the first to vote for giving the military what it asks for."

Murphy held a meeting in Danbury Friday, March 2, with educators and parents to discuss the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which is up for renewal.

"No Child Left Behind isn’t going anywhere. We’ll reauthorize the act, but with significant reforms."

Teachers are particularly vocal in their dislike of the act, which relies heavily on frequent standardized testing.

"They’re telling me that we’re testing kids to death," said Murphy. "I’m concerned that there’s very little creative teaching going on because they have to teach to these tests.

"And it’s all meaningless from a national point of view anyway, since all the states set their own standards."