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Their approach, by placing reform squarely in the remit of state legislatures, also threads another political needle. Change cannot begin locally, many Republicans believe, because teachers’ unions have packed so many boards of school districts. Nor should reform originate in the federal government, they believe. On the tea-party wing and among the current batch of presidential candidates, debate seems to be mainly about how fast to scrap the federal Department of Education altogether. Mr Bush, through his spokesman, treads carefully on this point, since a now-discredited federal school reform is part of the legacy of George Bush junior. Washington’s role is to “set high expectations, then leave it up to the states,” says Ms Emhof.
Sandi Jacobs at the National Council on Teacher Quality, a think-tank in Washington, says that the list of states with good policies “skews slightly Republican” but also includes others, such as Rhode Island. Nonetheless, it is very Democratic states such as California, she thinks, where the outlook for reform is worst. By the presidential election in 2016, perhaps, education may actually be part of a Republican candidate’s pitch.

A. 어휘
squarely 정정당당하게. remit 委託(위탁), 위임.
state legislatures 州 議會(의회). threads 실을 꿰다.
boards of school districts 學區(학구) 위원회. originate 發源(발원)하다, 시작되다.
tea-party wing 增稅(증세) 반대 진영. current 현재의. batch 무리, 떼.
presidential candidates 대통령 후보. debate 토론, 논쟁.
scrap 폐기하다, 찢어 버리다. treads 밟다. discredit 신용을 떨어뜨리다.
legacy 遺産(유산), 유물.
skew 기울어지다(본문에서는 호감을 표시하다의 뜻으로 쓰임).
pitch 팔아먹으려고 집요하게 늘어놓는 말.