CNN “Democracy in Peril” host Jim Acosta on Tuesday reacted to Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) setting up a tip line for parents to report the teaching of “inherently divisive” rhetoric such as Critical Race Theory.
Acosta noted that the GOP had recently been engaging in a culture war, which he warned “could be weakening our democracy.” He argued Youngkin went from “campaigning in a fleece vest” to running “a Soviet-style police state.”
“The new culture wars are impacting our laws, and some experts fear they could be weakening our democracy just as badly as the ‘Big Lie,'” Acosta proclaimed.
“You know, I seem to remember Glenn Youngkin campaigning in a fleece vest in Virginia. He was running as a different kind of Republican. I was told there was going to be a vest — not a Soviet-style police state across the Potomac from Washington,” he added.
Guest Molly Jong-Fast claimed Youngkin has “really gone full Ron DeSantis right away.”
“And it’s not just Youngkin,” Acosta replied. “A recent report shows there are dozens of new proposals opening pathways to punish teachers teaching things that parents don’t like. Why doesn’t this upset the traditional conservative tenets of liberty, anti-censorship and freedom? I guess, you know, if you want to cancel your teacher, you just have to email the governor in Virginia and, I guess, rat them out in other ways in other states.”
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