‘Parents Matter in Education’: Glenn Youngkin Makes Case Victory

Candidate Glenn Youngkin focused on education and parents in his final pitch ahead of Tuesday’s gubernatorial election in Virginia.

“We must empower parents, and address their concerns about school safety, the school curriculum and the decline in standards and results in Virginia schools,” Youngkin wrote in a Fox News op-ed to secure the vote of parents who are concerned about Critical Race Theory (CRT) being taught in schools.

Youngkin’s opponent has denied CRT is being taught to Virginia’s student. “It’s not taught here in Virginia,” Terry McAuliffe claimed about CRT on October 7. “We can ask about any topic. Here’s what I’ve said all along, and it really bothers me — this whole idea of stirring parents up to create divisions.”

Youngkin’s education plan includes more than just banning CRT. Youngkin also believes charter schools in the state should be expanded from eight to 28. “My Day One Game Plan calls for the immediate formation of 20 Innovation Charter Schools within the public school system,” he wrote.

“Virginia’s kids can’t wait,” Youngkin said about the need for Virginia’s educational system to be accommodate the demand for school choice. “Fewer than half of Black children in the third grade and barely half of Black children in the sixth grade passed reading assessments.”

Youngkin noted the “crisis” of violence at schools in reference to the “heinous” sexual assault case in Loudoun County, a bluer part of northern Virginia.

“Recently, I called for an immediate, full investigation of the heinous sexual assaults that clearly appear to have been covered up by Loudoun County officials,” Youngkin wrote, “including the superintendent, school board members, and the commonwealth attorney.”

Youngkin doubled down on Attorney General Merrick Garland for permitting an FBI probe into parents that was predicated on a faulty memo from National School Board Association (NSBA) which labeled parents “domestic terrorists.”

“Instead of investigating parents, the Department of Justice should be investigating those who were involved in the coverup,” Youngkin stated.

As Youngkin has run on state issues of education and parental rights, a Republican victory in Virginia would likely have national implications. A win for Youngkin would make it difficult for President Joe Biden to pass his radical tax and spend agenda.

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø