How many times have we heard Democrats say we do not spend enough on public schools? Every problem from low test scores to crime to poverty is blamed on the fact we simply don't "invest" enough in our children's education. That's just not true, of course. As states like Mississippi and Louisiana have demonstrated, the issue is how material is taught and the standards students are expected to meet, and not how much we spend per pupil.

This has been proven. California, where Gov. Gavin Newsom bragged about astronomical per-pupil spending, has far worse reading outcomes for black students than the supposedly racist red state of Mississippi. And now Michigan, which increased education spending, just recorded new lows for test scores.

Here's more:

State Superintendent Dr. Glenn Maleyko said more work is needed—especially on reading.

“It will take continued hard work from everyone and a strong Students First approach to improve student achievement across Michigan,” Maleyko said. “That means we must emphasize teamwork involving MDE, the State Board of Education, local school districts, parents, the governor, the legislature, the business and philanthropic communities, education associations, labor, higher education and libraries.”

The results of the 2026 Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress, also known as M-STEP, found that 61.8% of all third-graders scored below proficient on the state’s English language arts test. That was up slightly from 61.1% in 2024.

Blue states, in their hatred of all things Republican, seem unwilling to look at what Mississippi did to improve reading scores and emulate it. In fact, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said recently that there are just some kids who will never learn to read (and he used to be the head of Wisconsin's Department of Public Instruction).

And if schools actually focused on education instead of indoctrinating students using Critical Race Theory, the LGBTQ agenda, and anti-Zionism, perhaps they'd have more time for teaching reading and math.

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The decline of educational standards is a choice.

It's not the spending. It's not free lunches. It's a deliberate and intentional choice by education officials and politicians to lower standards and reduce accountability.

It never does.

As Mike Rogers pointed out, when kids can't read, they have a 70 percent chance of ending up in prison or on welfare. Who benefits from having lots of people on welfare? The Democrat Party, which can use welfare to buy votes.