Former president Donald Trump praised the U.S. Supreme Court for its historic back-to-back decisions affecting education and religious rights, drawing enthusiastic applause from a conservative parental-rights group’s annual conference.
But after making those largely predictable remarks during his June 30 speech, Trump went off-script. He told the Joyful Warriors National Summit of Moms for Liberty, “It’s not part of my remarks, but I’m going to make it part, if you don’t mind: I want to move our education system back to the states.”
Trump revealed that some people had advised him against talking about returning education to the states, fearing the idea would prove unpopular. “I said, ‘I don’t care,’” Trump said, and he deadpanned: “I hope everybody likes that because, otherwise, I just blew it.”
He’s confident that “the states will do a fantastic job,” and eliminating the federal education bureaucracy would also be less expensive. “We'll actually save money and reduce our debt and lots of other good things can happen,” he said.
During his Philadelphia speech, which lasted about an hour and six minutes, Trump also made a slew of other education-related pledges that he would implement if voters return him to the White House in the 2024 election.
Trump hit on key points that are of primary importance to Moms for Liberty, a group that has burgeoned so much in just two years that Trump called it a “grassroots juggernaut.” It boasts 120,000 members in 45 states.
Three ‘Good’ Justices
The audience cheered enthusiastically when Trump pointed out that he had the privilege of appointing three Supreme Court justices: Amy Coney Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch. That trio of “good” justices have played key roles in a number of historic decisions, Trump said, noting that some presidents are lucky to be able to appoint a single justice.He applauded the Supreme Court for its new decision to block the government from paying off student loan debts. “President Biden is not allowed to wipe out hundreds of billions of dollars, which would have been very unfair to the millions and millions of people who paid their debt through hard work and diligence,” Trump said.
Trump called Biden’s loan-payment plan “a way of trying to buy votes.”
On June 30, the Supreme Court also delivered “a tremendous win” for religious liberty when it ruled that people can refuse to do business with a person who makes a request that conflicts with his or her religious beliefs.
“This was a big two days,” Trump said.
Ending ‘Unlawful Discrimination’
In keeping with the Supreme Court’s June 29 ruling ending race-based discrimination in college admissions policies, “I will eliminate all diversity, equity and inclusion programs across the entire federal government,” Trump said.Trump also promised to direct the Department of Justice (DOJ) “to pursue civil rights claims against any school, corporation or university that engages in unlawful racial discrimination.”
“We will restore a society based on equality, liberty and merit,” he said, adding, incredulously, “We’re back with merit–can you believe this? This happened yesterday!”
School ‘Reforms’ Incentivized
States and school districts will enjoy “massive funding preferences” if they make a series of “revolutionary reforms.” These include allowing parents to see “100 percent of the curriculum that their children are being taught in school.” He also wants schools to use merit pay “to reward the great teachers” and to get rid of “bad teachers” by abolishing teacher tenure for grades K-12.Trump said he is appalled to see videos showing students and teachers being “beaten up,” and he would take steps to make schools safer for teachers and students alike.
In addition, the former president promised to shield parents from being targeted by the same authorities that he says have wrongfully hounded him. “We will not be allowing the FBI and DOJ to attack you as you make your complaint to the school board,” he declared.
Speaking His Mind
Trump says he has often held back what he really wanted to say about Biden because of the respect he has for the office of the presidency.But Trump said that, as a result of the Biden administration’s alleged political prosecution of him, he isn’t exercising much restraint.
“He recently ordered his top political opponent arrested,” Trump said, adding wryly, “ Oh wow, that’s me.”
Trump was charged in connection with records violations by state officials in April and by federal authorities in June. “So I was arrested. And every time, my polls go up,” Trump said. Then, he said, Biden and his persecutors “get more and more radicalized and vicious.”
“They indicted the former president of the United States over (expletive). So now I’m allowed to say it like it is: We have a corrupt president. He’s 100 percent crooked,” Trump said, referring to millions of dollars that Biden and his family have allegedly reaped from foreign sources. The alleged influence-peddling is being investigated by Republicans in Congress.
Nation Imperiled
Some people think that Biden, who is 80, has “an age problem.” But Trump suggested Biden is suffering from some issue other than just age. “I know people that are 90 years old that are making a fortune and are as smart as they ever were,” Trump said.But even before his recent instances of appearing disoriented, Trump said Biden “is dumb ... and he was dumb 25 years ago.”
The current president’s issues are putting the nation at risk, Trump said.
“Many countries now have nuclear weapons, and we have a man who is grossly incompetent leading us. This is the most dangerous time in the history of our country because of the power of weaponry,” Trump said.
Trump suggested that Biden is compromised because he received “millions and millions of dollars” from China–and that’s why the U.S. is doing nothing to stop China from “opening up military operations in Cuba, 90 miles off our coast ... that’s the most serious threat that I can imagine, and nobody talks about it.”
The crowd responded with cheers when Trump ended his speech with a clarion call to the Moms for Liberty who had gathered in Philadelphia, the city where America’s democracy was born with the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Using his hand in a karate-chop motion to emphasize the words, “the most important election in the history of our country,” Trump called upon the audience to show up on Election Day next year and cast their ballots for him.
“We will take back our schools we will defeat Joe Biden,” he said, “and, propelled by the spirit of July 4, 1776, we will win a righteous victory on November 5, 2024.”
