Common Core divides GOP's potential 2016 field

It didn't take long for Jeb Bush to find out what he'll be debating with his fellow Republicans if he runs for president in 2016.

Less than 24 hours after Bush announced he will "actively explore" a presidential bid, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul — also a potential candidate — shot back with a one-line online ad from RandPAC, his political action committee: "We need leaders who will stand against Common Core,'' the ad said.

The quick response shows how controversy over educational standards that have their roots in the education policy of President George W. Bush could affect a campaign by his younger brother.

The GOP's bumper crop of potential presidential candidates is split on the Common Core, a set of academic guidelines introduced in 2010 by the National Governors Association and adopted by 46 states. Since leaving the Florida governorship in 2007, Bush has spent much of his time advocating for education reform, including Common Core and school choice. He created the Foundation for Excellence in Education as a vehicle for the cause.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie supports the standards, as do mainstream Republican-leaning groups including the Business Roundtable and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which see educational improvement as a necessity for American competitiveness.

But the Common Core standards have become a target of opposition among conservatives, who see them as unwarranted federal intrusion into state and local control of education. Opponents have dubbed the standards "Obamacore.''

To the conservative wing of the GOP, Common Core is anathema. Paul, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio all oppose the standards. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker called for repeal of the standards during his re-election campaign this year. Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed legislation opting out of the standards in in March. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, also considering a presidential campaign, has sued the Obama administration for allegedly coercing states into adopting the standards.

In Iowa, where the first presidential primary contest is held, GOP activists "see it as a complete loss of control,'' says Bob Vander Plaats, an influential Iowa conservative. "They believe it is a complete government takeover of the education system."

That position is shared by Americans for Prosperity, the political action group backed by billionaires Charles and David Koch. "We oppose expanded federal interference in education,'' says AFP spokesman Levi Russell. "Our activists are interested in hearing directly from potential candidates on the positions they support, and will be evaluating them based on those issues."

Bush can emphasize his support for school choice, which unlike Common Core is popular among conservatives, says Craig Robinson, former political director for the Iowa GOP. "He has a record that would appeal to a lot of Iowans on education. He's put together policies that expand educational choice and at the end of the road, that's what a lot of Iowans want."

Common Core standards resulted in part from fears that testing under No Child Left Behind — George W. Bush's signature education overhaul — had encouraged states to lower their standards to more easily meet NCLB progress goals. When the Obama administration offered Race to the Top grant money as an incentive to adopt Common Core standards, states leaped to do so.

Many are now having second thoughts. Indiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, North Carolina and South Carolina have all dropped Common Core standards after initially adopting them, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures — though Missouri, North and South Carolina are still using the standards while they develop alternatives. Alaska, Nebraska, Texas and Virginia never adopted the standards.

Controversy began to grow last year, when schools actually began teaching curricula aligned with the Common Core, says Mike McShane of the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank. "Kids for the first time were starting to come home and say, 'We've got these new math lessons and my teacher says it's because we're doing the Common Core,' '' McShane says. "That's when it hit Facebook.''

In 2014 there were 77 bills introduced in state legislatures to limit or halt implementation of Common Core — with more expected next year — including in Iowa and New Hampshire. When the GOP candidates show up in earnest for the first nominating contests of 2016, they will be stepping into the battleground where state-level fight may turn into a presidential one.