Former Vice President Joe Biden used his first presidential campaign stop in Houston to lay out his plans for public education. More than 100 people filled the town hall organized by the American Federation of Teachers on Tuesday night.
Before Biden launched into his plan for education, he acknowledged he's one of a long line of Democratic candidates fighting for the votes of public school teachers and staffers.
"Everybody's going to tell you how much they value education," Biden said. "Well I've got an expression I use: Don't tell me what you value. Show me your budget, and I will tell you what you value."
.@JoeBiden takes stage at IBEW Local 716, addressing @AFTunion #hounews @HPMNews887 pic.twitter.com/Bc51kjSbLZ
— Andrew Schneider (@ASchneider_HPM) May 28, 2019
Biden called to triple funding for Title I, a federal program that funds schools with a high proportion of students from low-income families. The increase would lift Title I funding from $15 billion to $45 billion. He pledged that much of the increase would go to raise teachers' pay.
Biden echoed several other Democratic candidates in calling to make community college free for all, to forgive all student debt for working teachers and to double the number of mental health care professionals in schools.
