In a recent closed-door meeting, secretly captured on video by a Nashville news station, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee listened attentively and sipped water as a close education advisor of his administration accused teachers of “messing with people’s children,” saying they are “trained in the dumbest parts of the dumbest colleges in the country.” The advisor also compared public school systems to “enslavement” and “the plague.” As the audience laughed at these remarks, Lee said nothing to contest them.

When later asked about his advisor’s remarks, Lee defended them while claiming to support Tennessee teachers. “I'm not going to rebut someone who was speaking about left-wing problems in public education in this country that have actually hurt the genuine work of our teachers,” Lee added. ...