DeSantis hits back at Biden’s ‘book burning’ comment: ‘We want education, not indoctrination’

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis hit back at Joe Biden Thursday during an “Ingraham Angle” town hall event after the president alluded to politicians “burning books” to try and “score political points.”

“Today there are too many politicians trying to score political points, trying to ban books – even math books,” Biden said Wednesday during the annual National and State Teachers of the Year award ceremony. 

The president appeared to be referring to the Florida Department of Education’s decision to bar 41% of math textbooks for public schools they claimed included critical race theory and “social-emotional learning.” Nine of these books were reinstated after the publishers scrubbed the prohibited content. 

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Ron DeSantis speaks during the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Orlando, Florida, on Feb. 24, 2022. 
(Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“Did you ever think when you’re teaching you’d be worrying about book burnings and banning books all because it doesn’t fit somebody’s political agenda?” Biden added at the time.

Speaking from Orlando Thursday, DeSantis was asked by Laura Ingraham about the apparent “pot shot” from Biden and he said that “we draw a hard line in Florida” regarding education. 

“We want education, we do not want indoctrination,” DeSantis said before he was cut off by a long round of applause from the audience. 

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DeSantis added that his administration believes parents have a “fundamental role” in their children’s upbringing and education while Biden and his administration believe parents should “butt out” so schools can indoctrinate “what they think your kid should learn or believe.”

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“This is a huge debate in our country – it’s sad that it is,” DeSantis continued. 

“Why would you not want parents involved? But they don’t want parents involved because they know that will represent an obstacle to them indoctrinating them the way they want.”