Friday, June 11, 2010

On the future of the Department of Education

Writing for National Review Online, Mona Charen offers a shrewd look at the history of the DOE.
Newly minted Nevada Senate candidate Sharron Angle is a kook: That’s what Sen. Harry Reid’s people are telling reporters. ABC, CNN, and other outlets seem to agree, noting that Mrs. Angle wants to shutter the federal Department of Education, get the U.S. out of the U.N., phase out Social Security, and eliminate the IRS.

We haven’t yet heard her explanations of these positions — many of which can be justified in the proper context. It’s certainly possible that she is a little eccentric (that prison massage program doesn’t pass the smell test). But this much is certain: It is not kooky to favor the elimination of the Department of Education. That this proposal is routinely labeled “extremist” is a reminder of the one-way ratchet that operates in government. Enshrine something in a federal agency, and it becomes sacrosanct. Democrats cheerlead for federal programs because they are the party of government, and Republicans quietly go along because they’re afraid.

For far too long, Republicans have accepted liberal premises, and the policies that spring from them, out of fear of being labeled by the left as callous. The party needs to shake this habit asap. With the current crop of new faces emerging in our ranks, this could become more of a possibility.

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