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Left's war on merit and Republicans' fight to save the American Dream

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Left's war on merit and Republicans' fight to save the American Dream

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I know what racism looks like. I saw it during my childhood in the Jim Crow South.

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I have also experienced the gift of growing up in a remarkable community that never let circumstances stand in the way of a dream. I was raised by educators who taught me that success was possible; I just needed to work for it. And I did. I never let failure hold me back. Instead, I fought to take advantage of every opportunity.

When I think about my kids’ and grandchildren’s future, I imagine a nation well beyond using race as a measure of intelligence and potential. Unfortunately, over the past several years, the political Left has tried to drag us down. They are intent on teaching Black and Brown students that the system is stacked against them, there is nothing they can do to stop it, and it is better to live in a perpetual state of victimhood.

This pessimistic message – holding back countless students because of race – is what the Left is trying to instill in our youth. (iStock)

This pessimistic message – holding back countless students because of race – is what the Left is trying to instill in our youth. This nonsense has reached America’s classrooms, where school boards and staff are waging a war on merit by lowering standards, canceling advanced and AP classes, and replacing entrance exams with arbitrary quota systems all in the name of so-called equity. 

SCHOOLS ACROSS COUNTRY DISBANDING DEI PROGRAMS IN DROVES; EDUCATION EXPERT EXPLAINS WHY

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Not only is minimizing standards counterintuitive to what we should be doing in K-12 and higher education, but it is also an insult to every student who is being fed myths that they are not as smart or capable as their peers because of race.

From teacher training to grading rubrics, we have seen how the “war on merit” has permeated our schools. Fairfax County, Virginia, one of the most egregious offenders of COVID school closures, provided their teachers with training on “grading for equity,” and they downplayed the data that showed student performance was lacking.

In Seattle Public Schools, the district made the insane decision in the name of “equity” to shut down 11 schools dedicated to offering hundreds of students gifted programs, leaving parents “flabbergasted” and disappointed.

Wake County Public Schools in North Carolina went as far as formally adopting an “equity policy” that stated, “all employees must apply an equity lens to examine and reflect on individual practices and biases,” while eliminating gifted and advanced courses.

SCHOOL DISTRICT DEI TRAINER SAYS AMERICAN FLAG BECOMING ‘HATE’ SYMBOL, EMPLOYEES RESISTING CRT SHOULD BE FIRED

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Instead of putting in the work and resources to help the kids who are falling behind, some districts have squandered money on “equity” consultants and other insulting and ineffective initiatives that only succeed in holding students back and stoking division.

In Boston, Massachusetts, the school district paid out $120,000 to create so-called “equitable grading policies.” A report released by the nonprofit, grassroots organization Parents Defending Education found that at least 20 school districts were implementing DEI hiring practices instead of focusing on applicants’ experiences, qualifications, and credentials.

Some school districts have gone as far as making it impossible for students to fail, even if they have not proven baseline proficiency in core subjects. In August 2021, Gov. Kate Brown of Oregon signed a bill into law that would allow students to graduate high school even if they couldn’t perform the reading, writing and math expected of a student who completed 12th grade. 

What happened? Students figured out they could show up briefly, get marked present, leave, and hand in two assignments, and they would still be able to pass.

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Gov. Kate Brown speaks during an interview in Portland, Oregon, on Jan. 20, 2016. (Meg Roussos/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

In a separate case, an audit conducted by the Maryland Inspector General’s Office and released in June 2022 found that high schools across Baltimore changed more than 12,000 grades to passing. It should be no surprise that at 13 high schools in the district, zero students demonstrated proficiency on the 2023 state math exam.

Our education system needs an overhaul. Schools should not be looking for ways to lower standards. Slashing academic opportunities is not the answer. We need policies in place that meet students where they are, help them progress, and challenge them to meet and exceed their true potential. 

Excellence should be the standard – not the exception.

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Meritocracy and education are how a man like me could rise to serve in the most powerful legislative body in the world. Every American student deserves that same opportunity.

That is why I am launching The Merit Caucus, focused on advancing and protecting merit in the American education system. Together, we will work to ensure that every student in America receives access to a quality education that matches their true potential and challenges them to be better.

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GOP Rep Nancy Mace introduces ‘Death Penalty for Child Rapists Act’

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GOP Rep Nancy Mace introduces ‘Death Penalty for Child Rapists Act’

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Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., has introduced a bill to authorize the death penalty as a potential punishment for the sexual abuse of children.

“We have zero mercy for child rapists. Those who prey on our most vulnerable deserve the harshest consequence we can deliver,” Mace said in a statement.

The proposal is aptly called the “Death Penalty for Child Rapists Act.”

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., announces she will run for South Carolina governor during a press conference at the Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina, on Aug. 4, 2025. (Tracy Glantz/The State/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

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“No predator should be allowed to walk away from the most unthinkable crimes against children,” Mace noted. 

“This bill is simple. Rape a child and you don’t get a second chance, you get the death penalty. We will never apologize for protecting America’s children,” Mace added.

The bill would put capital punishment on the table as an option to punish those who sexually abuse children.

REP NANCY MACE SLAPS DOWN EARLY RETIREMENT RUMOR: ‘BIG FAT NO FROM ME’

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., attends the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C.  (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

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“INTRODUCING: The Death Penalty for Child Rapists Act to amend Title 18 to authorize the death penalty for aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse of a minor and abusive sexual contact offenses against children. It will also amend the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) to authorize the death penalty for the rape of a child,” she said in a post on X.

“We’ve spent months fighting to expose Jeffrey Epstein’s network of powerful predators. We’ve demanded accountability and pushed for transparency. Now we’re making sure anyone who rapes a child faces the ultimate consequence,” she noted.

Mace has served in the U.S. House of Representatives since early 2021. 

NANCY MACE CLAIMS NANCY PELOSI ‘WAS A MORE EFFECTIVE HOUSE SPEAKER THAN ANY REPUBLICAN THIS CENTURY’

She is one of the candidates currently running in the South Carolina Republican gubernatorial primary.

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Virginia Democrats talk affordability — and vote to nearly triple their own pay

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Virginia Democrats talk affordability — and vote to nearly triple their own pay

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The Virginia State Senate and its Democratic majority may have voted to nearly triple their pay if a provision inserted into their final budget survives the House reconciliation process and reaches Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s desk.

The development comes as Spanberger has centered her campaign on “affordability,” with Richmond Democrats echoing that they are working to improve their constituents’ personal finances.

Virginia’s legislature itself was founded as a part-time, gentleman’s chamber, where lawmakers would return to their day jobs when Richmond wasn’t holding session.

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger signs executive orders. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

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Proponents of raising the current 1988-established salary of $18,000 for senators and $17,640 for delegates say the structure restricts who can afford to serve as a lawmaker today. Lawmakers also qualify for a $237 per diem, mileage reimbursements, and coverage of office, meeting and other expenses.

Senators’ new salary would be $50,000.

Republicans were quick to criticize the final budget, with the Virginia Senate Minority Caucus saying in a statement that “teachers got a 3% raise, but Democrats give themselves 300%.” The actual increase would be closer to 178%, though one could say the new salary would be 300% of the original. 

“The affordability hoax just gets worse and worse,” the caucus said, adding that the chamber’s majority killed a repeal of the car tax — something GOP gubernatorial nominee Winsome Sears ran on — while increasing the state budget by $1 billion overall.

Sen. Mark Obenshain, R-Rockingham, told WVTF it is the “wrong time” to address lawmaker pay.

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 “It’s supposed to be affordability for working families across Virginia, not members of the General Assembly,” he said.

Virginia’s legislature — the oldest continuous legislative body in the New World — has been making laws since its inception as the House of Burgesses in Colonial Williamsburg, where Spanberger gave the Democratic Party’s State of the Union response.

In her speech, she claimed President Donald Trump is the one “enriching himself, his family and his friends” and said Republicans are the ones “making your life more expensive.”

“I traveled to every corner of Virginia, and I heard the same pressing concern everywhere: costs are too high. In housing, healthcare, energy, and childcare,” she said.

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“Americans deserve to know that their leaders are focused on addressing the problems that keep them up at night.”

“Democrats across the country are laser-focused on affordability — in our nation’s capital and in state capitals and communities across America,” Spanberger said Tuesday.

The pay raise could be moot if the Democrat-controlled House of Delegates does not amend its own budget proposal to include the provision.

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The House’s budget includes $137 million for expanded childcare access, a minimum wage increase to $13.75 in 2027 and $15 in 2029, and a $20 million appropriation for state employees’ and home health care workers’ collective bargaining, according to Washington’s ABC affiliate.

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Fox News Digital reached out to the governor, as well as the House and Senate minority leaders, for further comment.

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Virginia murder suspect in bus stop stabbing had lengthy criminal history, multiple dropped charges

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Virginia murder suspect in bus stop stabbing had lengthy criminal history, multiple dropped charges

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A Virginia murder suspect accused of fatally stabbing a woman at a bus stop earlier this week has a lengthy criminal history filled with multiple arrests, but was let back onto the streets nearly every time. 

Abdul Jalloh, 32, is charged with the Monday night killing of Stephanie Minter, 41, of Fredericksburg, at a bus stop shelter, the Fairfax County Police Department said. 

Minter was found by officers with stab wounds to her upper body and pronounced dead at the scene, police said. 

Abdul Jalloh, 32, is accused of killing Stephanie Minter, 41, at a Virginia bus stop.  (Fairfax County Police Department; provided)

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Jalloh, 32, who was seen on surveillance cameras exiting the bus with Minter at Richmond Highway and Arlington Drive, was arrested the next day. 

He was arrested at a liquor store after an employee called 911. At the time, officers arrested him for allegedly shoplifting. Investigators linked him to the murder a day later. 

Authorities were still trying to determine a motive for the killing and what led to the deadly stabbing. 

A search of online court records revealed Jalloh has more than a dozen arrests in northern Virginia, including on charges of petty larceny and malicious wounding. 

In most of the cases, prosecutors dropped the charges, FOX D.C. reported. 

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REPEAT OFFENDER ON PAROLE FOR MURDER TIED TO BRUTAL JAIL ASSAULT, ESCAPE HOURS AFTER ROBBERY

Abdul Jalloh seen on a bus in Virginia.  (Fairfax County Police Department)

Laura Birnbaum, the chief of staff for Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano, said Jalloh was known to the district attorney’s office and was “acutely aware of the risk he posed to the community.”

“That is why we convicted the defendant of a 2023 malicious wounding charge, and have since made every effort to hold him accountable each subsequent time that he has come in contact with the criminal justice system, including asking him to be held in custody whenever possible,” Birnbaum said. 

“Unfortunately, the defendant in this case also had a history of selecting victims with no fixed address – some of the most vulnerable members of our community,” she added. “In multiple cases, we were unable to move forward with prosecution because victims could not be located or contacted.”

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Stephanie Minter, 41, was killed on Monday after getting off of a bus in Virginia.  (Provided)

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An obituary for Minter described her as a “happy, jolly” person. 

“A beam of light in dark places,” the obituary states. 

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