In the case of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), is politics the enemy of problem solving? By examining some of the political controversies surrounding NCLB, it will be demonstrated that politics is the enemy. Since NCLB went into effect, large amounts of scientific literature and news reports have been published about its effects, demonstrating the impact and debate this law has generated. The primary goals of this bipartisan legislation were to improve student achievement through standardized testing by using annual test score data to measure the progress of each student and school; closing the achievement gap between disadvantaged students and their more affluent peers; and hold teachers and schools accountable. All these actions had to be carried out in order to improve school results. As the law's long title specifies, NCLB should: “…close the achievement gap with accountability, flexibility and choice so that no child is left behind.” The law goes on to state: "...that all children have a fair, equal, and meaningful opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and to achieve, at a minimum, proficiency on challenging state academic achievement standards and state academic assessments" (PL 107-110, Title I). The legislation is ambitious and appears well-intentioned, but numerous controversies and problems have emerged over the years. Background and Current Situation Essentially NCLB is the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which originated in 1965. There have been numerous amendments to the law over the years, the latest being NCLB, which it has needed reauthorization since 2007 and currently the Obama administration has introduced the “Plan for Change.” half of the document ......d implemented. Years of empirical research lead to common recommendations for improvement, such as uniform standards for academic and teacher qualifications and for attracting highly qualified teachers to low-performing schools (Stecher et al., 56–59). ). However, to further develop student achievement, some policy areas, such as social welfare (which goes beyond the scope of NCLB) must be coordinated with educational policy. Considering the current political situation in Congress, it seems unlikely that the recommendations made by education and poverty policy experts will be taken into consideration. Many researchers agree that solutions need to be implemented in the United States and have been successful in other countries, but politics, our political system, budget crisis, and political attitudes in this country are obstacles to potentially successful solutions.