In Orlando back in June, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and other big-city Democratic mayors convinced the U.S. Conference of Mayors to unanimously endorse the idea of parent triggers - and were promptly savaged by critics. They were tools of ALEC, profiteers, enemies of public schools.

Nutter just spoke to the DNC a few minutes ago, and if he's a right-wing fringie out to gut public education, he's also got a bright future as an actor. Frankly, with tonight's script, he sounded a lot more like an establishment Democrat than a reform-minded one. But the point isn't to critique Nutter's positions on education policy. It's to note that some particularly vocal ed reform critics have become so rigid, they're disparaging - and potentially alienating - fair-minded people who actually agree with them much of the time.

Here are the prepared remarks for Nutter's speech:

I'm honored to serve as mayor of my hometown where our founders started America with three simple words: "We, the people." And when they said "people," they didn't mean "corporations."

I'm most honored to be the father of Christian and Olivia, and a proud parent of a public school student.

My wife, Lisa, and I know Olivia's education is central to everything she, and everyone in my city, wants to achieve. In Philadelphia, our public safety, poverty reduction, health and economic development all start with education. We can't grow the middle class if we don't give our kids the tools they need to innovate and invent.

But first we have to invest in them. That's what President Obama did, saving 400,000 educators' jobs and giving states the flexibility to shape their schools.

Mitt Romney doesn't get it. (more…)