White House Threatens Veto of GOP Education Bill

President Barack Obama is threatening to veto a Republican rewrite of the No Child Left Behind education law.

The White House said Wednesday that House Republicans' revisions to the sweeping education law "represent a significant step backwards in the effort to help our nation's children and their families prepare for their futures." The White House statement says the GOP rewrite would strip administration priorities, such as the Race to the Top competition and Promise Neighborhoods.

The Republican-led House could vote as soon as Thursday on the bill that would eliminate dozens of school improvement programs. The bill gives state and local officials the power to implement reforms on their own and explicitly bars the U.S. Education Department from encouraging states to implement national standards.