The new winning issue for the GOP is public education, with conservative heroes like Governor Youngkin (R-VA) and progressive villains like the teachers unions. It’s at once a budget battle as bad schools find themselves half empty, and a culture war against “woke” curricula. It’s created new swing voters in parents, with 83% saying education is now a “big issue” and 82% saying they’ll “cross party lines” to vote for candidates in line with their views (source: Harris Polling).
Democrats have yet to realize America’s paramount political division is between 519,682 elected officials (500,396 local, 18,749 state and 537 federal) and 330 million everyday people. The former enacts laws and allows policies. The latter suffers the consequences. This is why the news is filled with reports of angry parents confronting public-school boards, and Go2Tutors reports parents are poised to vote out politicians who oppose school choice or support race-based lesson plans.
The Budget Time Bomb
Michael Bloomberg says “most states have seen enrollment declines for two straight years” because “1.3 million students have left public schools since [COVID] began.” He sees a ways and means disaster begun by teacher unions closing schools and, thereby, forcing kids into charter, home, parochial, and private school (e.g. K-12 enrollment has dropped 9% in New York City since 2020). And, when tax-paying parents pull their kids out of “free” local schools, a political backlash is almost certain.
Bloomberg says “state education funding formulas rely on student population numbers (and) a large reduction in students will lead to a corresponding reduction in school budgets.” He warns the exodus in New York today will result in “paying teachers to lead half-empty classrooms” tomorrow. On top of that, COVID launched a Great Migration to suburbs and open-up states like Florida.
Consider the budget problems facing deep-blue Illinois. Start with union teachers in Chicago taking COVID money in 2021 and refusing in-school classes. Add in Ken Griffen moving Citadel (and his $200 million in personal tax payments to Virginia) this year, right after Illinois lost Boeing and Caterpillar. Who’ll supply the students and pay the bills?
Bloomberg notes an “extra $190 billion” was spent to “re-open schools and avoid layoffs” after Biden took office, and the National Right to Work Committee notes most of the funds “overwhelmingly bailed out unionized” public schools (i.e. the schools that did not open or lay off teachers). Bloomberg thinks like a parent; failing schools should have fewer students, and union teachers should not be rewarded when their pupils are 4 months behind their cohorts in math and reading.
The Parent-Teacher Culture War
Go2Tutors sees ample evidence of a parent-teacher schism, because “parents have continuously clashed with school boards and voiced their opposition” to race-based lesson plans and sexualization of minors. They fault the Department of Education for focusing “more on what students look like than what they are learning and how they apply it.” By the way, the parental backlash cuts across race, creed and color.
A black father in Virginia is furious that his 16-year-old daughter must compete against transgender boys. A white mom in Connecticut doesn’t want her 7-year-old son forced to admit “white male privilege” at school. An Asian dad in New York feels betrayed because quotas kept his 13-year-old daughter out of a gifted-and-talented program. A Latino mother in California wants school choice because of bad local schools. This proof is all over social media (where I found it).
This is exactly what swung Virginia’s 2021 gubernatorial election to Republican Glenn Youngkin; Democrat Terry McAuliffe supported school boards over parents, ignoring the sexualization of minors, and appearing to support critical race theory being taught in elementary schools. Newsweek called these blunders “McAuliffe’s Kryptonite” before the election.
In an October debate, he belittled Youngkin for “believing parents should be in charge of their kids’ education.” He promised, “I’m not going to let parents come into schools and make their own decisions, telling schools what they should teach.” Republicans aired that video evidence of woke arrogance over and over until Election Day – and reminded voters McAuliffe had “sent his kids to private schools.” On top of THAT dumb, McAuliffe injected dishonesty.
Right after the debate, he told NBC, “Glenn Youngkin wants to ban critical race theory. Well, let me explain: It’s never been taught in Virginia.” Powerful, but for an ABC News story airing a McAuliffe-era training video urging Virginia public schools to “embrace critical race theory.” The next polls showed Youngkin pulling away from McAuliffe.
It’s OK to Say “Gay”
You’ve probably heard the left’s hyperbole, but few parents object to schools hiring non-binary adults or want teachers to gloss over the history of slavery and racism in America. Parents want merit-based programs and don’t want schools to “sexualize” or “race-shame” children. Above all, they want higher NAEP scores, fewer bad teachers, and the freedom to move their kids to a school of their choosing.
Harris Polling just reported three in four parents want school choice. 74% would send their child to a public charter school if one were available near them. 77% want more public charter school offerings. 81% support expanding enrollment in existing public charter schools. Democrats heed teacher unions at their own risk: 70% of Blacks and 63% of Hispanics “strongly agree that parents should be able to have a choice in where their children go to school.”
Standing in their way are politicians, who depend on teacher union votes and money for re-election, and school boards that stick up for bad schools. This hit home in Virginia: Randi Weingarten (AEF union head) campaigned for McAuliffe, school boards were outed for hiding decisions-gone-bad, and Biden voters swung to Youngkin.
Democrats give many reasons for low Gen-Z (21%) and Millennial (36%) approval ratings, when the REAL reason is maturation (holding a job, buying a home, starting a family). Duh! The circle of life, especially the huge task of good parenting, moves one rightward with age.
The electorate isn’t getting any younger and managing a household isn’t getting any easier, so it’s no wonder parents say their top two election issues are rising prices and education (source: Harris). These voters aren’t moved by hatred. They’re moved by shock: good parenting wasn’t supposed to be so hard. Come November, they’ll vote to ease the load and ease their minds.