throwing a bone to the base
Trump says he's going to create a commission to promote 'pro-American curriculum'
President Trump on Thursday claimed without evidence that "decades of left-wing indoctrination in our schools" has harmed students, and he is creating a national commission to promote a "pro-American curriculum that celebrates the truth about our nation's great history."
Trump made this announcement while speaking at the National Archives. He said the panel will be called the 1776 Commission, and it will help "patriotic moms and dads" who are "going to demand that their children are no longer fed hateful lies about the country." He also called recent anti-racism protests "left-wing rioting and mayhem" and said it is wrong to believe that the U.S. was founded on principles of "oppression, not freedom."
The curriculum taught at schools is a local decision, not federal. Albert Broussard, a professor at Texas A&M who specializes in Afro-American history, told The Washington Post this isn't about introducing new policies, but rather another way for Trump to stoke his base. "Trump plays to this idea of white grievance and white fear and white insecurity," Broussard said. "The country's population has changed racially and ethnically ... I think that will continue to provoke anxiety among some people."