Youngkin blasts Virginia education proposals seeking to strike George Washington as ‘Father’ of US

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EXCLUSIVE: Republican Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin blasted the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) proposals seeking to strike President George Washington as the "Father of our Country" on statewide tests. 

Washington and fellow Founding Father President James Madison were facing the epithetical chopping block according to two VDOE proposals.

The proposals would have struck Washington’s title of "Father of our Country" and Madison’s dub of "Father of the Constitution" from the state's standard of learning exams. 

VIRGINIA GOV. YOUNGKIN, A RISING GOP STAR, READY TO HIT CAMPAIGN TRAIL SUPPORTING FELLOW REPUBLICANS

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said he disagrees with the Virginia Department of Education proposals targeting George Washington and James Madison. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Youngkin said he disagrees with the proposals targeting two Virginian presidents in a Tuesday phone interview with Fox News Digital, noting the proposals came from his predecessor’s administration.

"I believe we should tell our history accurately, the good and the bad," Youngkin said.

"And part of the history we're going to tell is that our Founding Fathers, including George Washington and James Madison, and let’s not forget about Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry, and the others, played an extraordinary role in the founding of our nation," Youngkin continued.

The governor said that his administration will "reinforce" the role the Founding Fathers played in the creation of America and that Virginia will tell the history of America "accurately and completely."

The VDOE told local press on Tuesday that the inclusion of the proposals was an "inadvertent" error.

The Virginia governor also said he was excited about his plans to campaign for Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon, noting the political environment in the currently-blue state "is very similar to what we saw in Virginia last year."

Youngkin will be traveling up to Michigan to stump for Republican gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)

"Not Republican versus Democrat Democrats, but citizens of Michigan to see real change in education, to see crime come down, to see cost of living managed so much better," the Old Dominion governor said. "And we saw the exact same thing in Virginia last year."

Dixon has made education a key facet of her campaign, as Youngkin did against Democrat former Governor Terry McAuliffe in the 2021 gubernatorial race. Youngkin said he believes GOP candidates across the country will place a bigger emphasis on education.

"This is a moment for Republican candidates to recognize that that's a Republican agenda. And education is what Virginians voted for last year and Americans are looking for," Youngkin said. "Parents matter, and what so many people are seeing across this nation is that is the systematic effort to put bureaucrats and politicians between parents and their children and this idea that parents should be removed from their kids."

Youngkin said education "is not a Republican versus Democrat" issue and that America is in a moment "to put parents back in the primary role in their children's education."

Youngkin said the legal claims he did not pay taxes on money he made from the Carlyle Group were "wrong." ( Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

"And this is the moment for Republican candidates to really distinguish themselves," he added.

Dixon is taking on incumbent Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who has been fielding controversy from nursing home to education decisions since she was elected in 2018.

Youngkin also touched on the reports of a lawsuit alleging he did not pay taxes on $8.5 million amid a business restructuring at his former firm the Carlyle Group, denouncing the reporting as "incorrect" and saying he has paid his taxes.

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"First of all, the claims are wrong," Youngkin said, noting he retired from the Carlyle Group two years ago. "And I just want to be extremely clear: I have paid taxes on these proceeds."

Youngkin will be in Michigan stumping for Dixon later this month as she looks to unseat Whitmer.