Posted on 04/09/2015 8:31:05 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-LA), and former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) after a Town Hall Panel Discussion hosted by Steve Deace at the NICHE Homeschool Iowa Capitol Day at the Holiday Inn Des Moines-Airport/Conference Center in Des Moines on Thursday, Apr. 9, 2015.
DES MOINES — The debate over religious liberty in Indiana spilled over into Iowa Thursday as four presidential hopefuls pledged to defend the rights of parents who home-school their children to worship as they choose and educate their children as they wish.
Religious liberty is the “civil rights issue of the 21st century,” Texas Sen. Ted Cruz told nearly 1,000 people at a forum hosted by the Network of Iowa Christian Home Educators — NICHE — at a Des Moines hotel as part of its eighth annual Capitol Day.
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal expressed alarm over the assault on religious liberty and said it’s time to remind “elites” that American did not create religious liberty, but “religious liberty created America.”
Cruz, Jindal, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum sought to win the backing of the home school association, which has become something of a force in Iowa Republican precinct caucus campaigns.
Part of that is simply numbers. There are more than 25,000 Iowans who are home schooled — roughly 6 percent of Iowa’s school-age population “and they are generally civic-minded, involved in their communities and the most likely to vote,” said Jamie Johnson, an Iowan and senior director of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s RickPAC. They typically “like limited government and believe in personal empowerment and traditional education.”
All of the hopefuls stressed their respect for and connection to home schooling. Jindal and Huckabee touted their state legislation supporting home schooling. Santorum noted “it’s great to be here with fellow home school moms and dads.”
He implored the parents to trust their judgment in choosing a president just as they trust themselves to make the best decisions about educating their children.
“Do not defer to the experts,” he said.
Home schooling isn’t easy, Huckabee said. He hopes there are enough Americans “who have the same conviction to make the sacrifice for the country that you are willing to make for your children.”
However, he worried that too many people will not make that choice.
There are 80 million self-identified evangelicals, but only half are registered to vote and only half vote in a presidential election.
“I worry there’s not the passion, the interest, and the commitment that is needed to get our country back where it needs to be,” Huckabee said. “You represent that passion.”
Jindal warned that winning the 2016 presidential race is not optional — “not because we are Republicans, not because we are conservatives, but because it is the future of our country that is at stake.”
“I don’t think we are beyond the tipping point, but I think it’s only four more years of this president’s policies, whether it is Hillary Clinton or whoever, we will get to that point,” he said.
Cruz drew a parallel between President Jimmy Carter and President Barack Obama — “same failed economic policies, same misery, stagnation and malaise.” The solution is another “Reagan revolution” by Republicans, Christian conservatives .and conservative Democrats.
“That’s what it’s going to take to turn this country around,” he said.
Earlier, at an energy forum at the World Food Prize in downtown Des Moines hosted by InsideSources and the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, Perry said America’s energy potential from traditional sources as well as newly tapped shale oil fields and renewable sources such as wind are “almost limitless.”
North America, Perry said, has more known oil and natural gas reserves than Saudi Arabia and Russia and he’d rather rely on those resources than Russian, Middle East. and Venezuelan oil.
“If energy is going to be used as a weapon, I say American must have the largest arsenal,” Perry said.
Santorum and Jindal also spoke at that forum.
Ping!
Interesting.
This ping list is for articles of interest to homeschoolers. I hold both the Homeschool Ping List and the Another Reason to Homeschool Ping List. Please freepmail me to let me know if you would like to be added or removed from either list, or both.
The keyword for the FREE REPUBLIC HOMESCHOOLERS’ FORUM is frhf.
If these numbers were supplied by government agencies then the real number is likely twice that.
Politicians would be wise to woo homeschoolers. Nothing like a motivated group of people who can turn any event or task into a credit.
I don’t trust them though.
I feel like they’re just trying to tap into a source they can use.
The problem is, we need someone like that in the political arena, who will stand for righteousness and the Constitution.
Homeschoolers used to be 3% of population going up!
With Holder’s and Hussein’s new requirements at schools that black and white students be punishment stats be proportional to racial population percentages, white students and Asian students will be targets.
I don’t trust any of GOP and Dems. I work for individual politicians.
The debate over religious liberty in Indiana spilled over into Iowa Thursday
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Why does there even have to be a “debate”? This nation was founded on the premise of “freedom”..... including freedom to worship without government intervention. Geesh.... this nation is going to hell in a hand basket. 2016 is our last hope. But, only 50% of the Evangelical Christians in America vote. We deserve what we get..... or don’t get.
CRUZ or LOSE!Very good point regarding the use of “debate.”
I don’t know if the use of this term in the very first sentence of the article was used sloppily or on purpose.
But it shouldn’t have been used at all. Your points are well taken.
Sometimes GOP hopefuls come to homeschool events. But a whole group of them showing up at the same time is a good sign (I hope).
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.