Mr. Newsom Goes to Washington
Apparently glad-handing with greasy palms, and measuring the drapes...
Our California governor has now become an expert in education. Guess the millions of dollars the National and State teachers unions have poured into his campaign coffers counted for something.
<insert *eyeroll* emoji>
On Wednesday, The National Forum on Education Policy gave Hair Gel the Frank Newman Award for State Innovation from the Education Commission of the States. He hasn’t stopped talking about it, or how education is under “assault” by the GOP, and especially by his chosen nemesis, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
It sounds like an SNL Comedy sketch, but sadly, it’s real life. The Governor who tried to kill children (and succeeded in some ways) with masks, lockdowns, closed schools, and attempted vaccine mandates received the award.
Mockery rightly ensued. Here are few of the best ratios:
One of these things is not like the other. The cognitive dissonance is staggering.
Most of us in California know that this is a fake prop to make Newsom look more “presidential”. Of course, while he was there, Newsom met with his favorite progressive Congress people, like the idiot Chris Murphy:
That tweet by Murphy is total bullshit. Gun Violence Archive documents at least 23 mass shootings in California alone, not to mention the spike in crime since the pandemic that the Democrats like to pretend doesn’t exist.
But do go off.
The Hill continues to give Newsom more oxygen for his 2024 presidential run:
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said on Wednesday that “education is under assault,” criticizing the banning of books across the country, efforts to suppress speech and “the othering of our students, teachers, parents.”
“I do believe education is under assault in ways that I’ve never experienced in my lifetime. I really believe that. I thought it was bad back in the day when folks were debating the merits or demerits around vouchers,” Newsom said while giving remarks at the National Forum on Education Policy after receiving the Frank Newman Award for State Innovation from the Education Commission of the States.
“You know, back in the good old days, in the ’90s, the black and white movie days, and people have different opinions about something called ‘charter schools,’” he mused. “But what’s happening now? Banning books, suppressing speech, the othering of our students, teachers, parents? It’s alarming.”
He slammed Florida[…]
Slamming Florida and attacking school choice. So on brand for Hair Gel. He loves inventing moral high ground where none exists.
No kidding. Newsom likes to pretend he did nothing to harm others’ children, while protecting his own.
It’s always all about him, and so is this astroturf campaign to get him on the 2024 ballot.
In contrast, after the initial “15 days to Stop the Spread”, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said, “No More”, and opened up the state and the schools—with no masks. DeSantis is also distinguishing himself by championing parental involvement in their child’s education and removal of indoctrination efforts through sexual grooming and CRT. Newsom has all but rolled out the red carpet for both of these, allowing the teachers unions who fund him to embed these toxic philosophies into every educational sector of the state.
Newsom has been anti-freedom for a long time, and pushes to remove parental involvement or parental authorization every chance he gets.
So if anyone is trying to destroy public education, it’s him.
Assemblyman and Congressional Candidate Kevin Kiley is rightly appalled by this obviously pretentious accolade. Kiley sent a letter to the Education Commission of the States.
He wrote, in part:
As it stands today, California has the lowest literacy rate of any state and its 8th graders are performing at a 5th grade level in math. Even before the pandemic California consistently ranked near the bottom nationally in academic test scores and had an abysmal achievement gap. Only 39 percent of low-income seventh graders met or exceeded ELA standards and only 20 percent of low-income students met or exceeded math standards.
To make matters worse, California then imposed the longest school closures of any state and was the last to get kids back to the classroom. As a result, students are now suffering from crippling learning loss. In LAUSD, the state's largest school district, it is estimated that students lost an average of 22 weeks of learning in math and 18 weeks of learning in reading. It is no wonder enrollment in California is declining at an alarming rate.
Across California, there are parents, teachers, and other education leaders working tirelessly — and indeed innovating — to help students succeed. It is their efforts that should be celebrated, not those of a state government that so often stands in their way.
Let Them Breathe, ReOpen California Schools, Let Them Play, and other organizations have been the champions and innovators for children’s education and sports. They are still fighting the battle, as the largest California counties of Los Angeles and San Diego are looking to reinstitute mask mandates in public schools.
The children continue to be targeted and suffer, while Newsom gets another paid vacation to D.C. to further his ends.
November 8, 2022—make it stop.