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Late last week, many conservatives blasted President Obama's plans for delivering a back-to-school speech today for school children, saying it was an attempt to indoctrinate students to a socialist agenda.

Conservative commentators called for school boycotts, and school administrators across the country struggled over whether to allow students to view the speech.

But after the White House released the transcript of the speech Monday, the noise died down -- somewhat.

The speech transcript, as the White House had earlier insisted, is focused on the merits of staying in school and working hard -- and includes a few warnings to students about how things won't always go smoothly.

Today, Obama hewed closely to that transcript.

For Florida GOP chairman Jim Greer, the release of the transcript led to an about face.

Last week, he wrote in a letter: "While I support educating our children to respect both the office of the American President and the value of community service, I do not support using our children as tools to spread liberal propaganda."

On Monday, Greer told ABC News he thought the speech was positive.

"It's a good speech," he told the station. "It encourages kids to stay in school and the importance of education, and I think that's what a president should do when they're going to talk to students across the country."

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich had defended the speech from the beginning.

"It's good for America," he told Fox News Sunday.

But some critics remained staunchly opposed.

"It's not the speech (as I pointed out last week), it's the subtext," wrote conservative commentator Michelle Malkin
on Monday, after the release of the transcript. "It's the overzealousness of public school educators who have turned classrooms into Obama campaign offices. ... It's the activist tradition of government schools using students as junior lobbyists to pressure legislators for higher education spending, pro-illegal immigration protests, gay marriage, environmental propaganda, and anti-war causes."

Also, Fox News today reported that, just two hours before Obama's speech, some schools were still struggling over whether to show it.

Much of the controversy centered on a supplemental lesson plan put out by the Department of Education asking students to write letters to themselves asking how they could "help the president." The lesson plan was changed shortly after the uproar.