“Rather than build a fence, why don’t we work out some recognition of our mutual problems, make it possible for them to come here legally with a work permit, and while they’re working here, and earning here, they pay taxes here.” It sounds like a very Liberal stance on immigration, but is actually a quote from Ronald Reagan during a debate with George H.W. Bush during a 1980 primary debate.

Ronald Reagan is the most extensively used figurehead of the Republican Party. During a GOP debate in 2015, Reagan was mentioned 63 times, all as symbols of what values we should return to. Why, then, is the Republican Party proposing strict border control?

A quote that is frequently mentioned by Ronald Reagan: “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.” This, in my opinion, is a bipartisan quote. It is also a quote I completely agree with. Dissent protects democracy. However, candidates on the Republican side don’t seem to agree with this. Sen. Ted Cruz would like to eliminate the board of education. Donald Trump would like to cut the department “way way down,” flirting with the idea of shutting it down entirely. Gov. John Kasich has called for actions to slim it down.

Here is a direct quote from the National Association Board of Education’s official website:

State boards of education are integral to the governance of public education in the United States. State Boards, operating as a lay body over state education, are intended to serve as an unbiased broker for education decisionmaking, focusing on the big picture, articulating the long-term vision and needs of public education, and making policy based on the best interests of the public and the young people of America.

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.”

So, I ask of the 2016 Republican candidates, why make that generation uneducated?