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In the future, when I think about the textbook definition of America’s failed pseudo-elite, I’ll think of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona.
In a Nov. 8 speech to Western state governors in Wyoming that was unearthed Monday, Cardona delivered this line about delivering technical assistance to states.
“As, I think it was President Reagan, said—‘We’re from the government, we’re here to help,’” he said. //
That’s certainly not what Ronald Reagan said.
The original, famous line comes from a 1986 press conference about agricultural policies in which Reagan said: “I’ve always felt the nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.”
Of course, Reagan was channeling the strong belief of many Americans at the time that the federal government had become too big and too intrusive, and was mostly incompetent at delivering solutions to the problems of American society. //
T. Becket Adams @BecketAdams
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The "education secretary" misstating a well-known quote regarding bureaucratic incompetence is too on-the-nose even for absurdist fiction. Any good editor would send it back and say, "Too much."
Townhall.com @townhallcom
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona:
"I think it was President Reagan who said, 'We're from the government. We're here to help!'"
Here's the actual quote:
"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the Government, and I'm here to help."
Embedded video
4:18 PM · Nov 27, 2023 //
Has American education really improved since the department was created in 1980? What does it say that the man who now leads it seems to be lacking in a basic understanding of history?
Whatever Cardona’s reason for botching the Reagan quote, it is an excellent illustration of the shallowness of our nation’s overcredentialed ruling class. Lacking both wisdom and a real education, they instead thrive on bland ideological conformity that stifles independent thought and elevates mediocrities.
America has had plenty of corrupt, incompetent, sinister, and downright crazy politicians and government officials in the past. But never before in our history have we had such uniform incompetence and ignorance embedded in positions of power. //
Let’s say you buy into the progressive-era ethos of replacing constitutionally limited government with an empowered, educated elite. How can one look at our current system and conclude that trading in America’s long tradition of self-government ushered in the rule of wise philosopher- bureaucrats? //
This problem isn’t just about Cardona or the Biden administration. It’s about the current failures of Western civilization and the United States.
When we think of the large and long-term failures of our government, when we think of the frayed and failing domestic institutions that have lost the trust of the American people, we should consider that our problem is not a few clowns in high places. The problem is an entire elite ecosystem that rewards the wrong values, that fails to develop the thinkers and leaders capable of leading a great society.
Our leaders know little about where we came from and less about where we are going.
Maybe one of the many reasons the leaders of our elite institutions stood by and watched, or outright cheered, when the mob came for the statues of our great men is that toppling monuments relieved them of embarrassing comparisons.