Obama Fact Check: Illinois 'Only State That Still Requires Phys Ed For Schools'

Addressing children's health to a group of doctors and nurses at the Ohio State Medical Center in Columbus on Saturday (2/23/08), Sen. Barack Obama made the following statement:

My home state of Illinois - I think, I'm pretty sure about this - is the only state in the country now that still requires phys ed [physical education] for local school districts. Most of the schools have abandoned it because they're under-funded, they're worried about testing.

First: According to the National Association for Sport & Physical Education (pdf file), Obama is wrong. The majority of states in the country require physical education at schools. (36 states require it at the elementary level; 33 in junior high; 42 at the high school level.)

In addition (according to NASPE again), Illinois is not even one of the 15 states that require student assessment in physical education.

Second: Obama claims that schools are "under-funded." They may be in the eyes of Obama, but as these Department of Education charts from a few years back show, federal funding for education has increased dramatically under President Bush. (As of 2004, the Department of Education budget had already grown 58% under Bush (source).)

Big deal? No. But so far, I've yet to see any news outlet cite Obama on his little gaffe.

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By the way ... Has everyone read about this exchange between Sen. Obama and Tim Russert on Meet the Press back on Jan. 22, 2006? (Via Tony Blankley, via Patterico:)

RUSSERT: ... When we talked back in November of ‘04 after your election, I said, “There’s been enormous speculation about your political future. Will you serve your six-year term as United States senator from Illinois?” Obama: “Absolutely.”

OBAMA: I will serve out my full six-year term. You know, Tim, if you get asked enough, sooner or later you get weary and you start looking for new ways of saying things. But my thinking has not changed.

RUSSERT: So you will not run for president or vice president in 2008?

OBAMA: I will not.

Now there's some change we can believe in!