Senate Republicans are out of step with their party leadership on Pre-K. Last Wednesday in the Education Committee, they voiced their opposition to opening Tennessee's voluntary Pre-Kindergarten classrooms to middle-class students.

According to the Senate Democratic Caucus, other prominent Republicans don't see it that way.

• "There are few investments the state can make that will pay off as well in the long run as voluntary Pre-K," Alabama Governor Bob Riley stated on December 6, 2007. The Republican Governors Association followed with a press release declaring, "Gov. Bob Riley's ambitious Pre-K plan is a monumental step forward in education."

• Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue fought in 2006 to ensure that his state's lottery proceeds were only spent on HOPE scholarships and Pre-K, calling them "two outstanding programs."

• California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said, "Preschool gives our kids the strong foundation they need to be successful in school and in life."

• Gov. Rick Perry recognized achievement gaps between different socio-economic groups in Texas and argued, "The best place to rectify those gaps is during the earliest learning years. We should invest an additional $80 million to expand the 'Early Start' Pre-K program."

• Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush noted that too many children were entering kindergarten with "underdeveloped learning skills" and asserted that Pre-K "addresses this concern responsibly."

Interesting how Republican governors are able to get support for Pre-K in their states. In Tennessee, it's more about who proposes the program than who the program will help.