Crenshaw Cites ‘Raganism’ in Fixing DEI Efforts

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts in higher education across the country have faced backlash from conservative lawmakers and voters. Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R) has been a vocal critic of the effort, warning that it further divides the country. However, Rep. Crenshaw argues that ‘Reaganism’ could be the answer to fixing DEI concerns in higher education.

Republicans and higher education have been at odds for quite some time.

Last year, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of removing affirmative action, and the response from university presidents to the war between Hamas and Israel has led Republicans to call for the resignation of university presidents.

In response, Rep. Crenshaw argues that learning from President Ronald Reagan’s (R) attempt to address higher education concerns could help solve the growing DEI concerns.

“What did Reagan do when University of California administrations coddled students and faculty radicals that were rioting?” Rep. Crenshaw questioned in a social media post, sharing the article “What Today’s Conservatives Can Learn from Ragan’s Higher-Education Battles” from the National Review.

“He sent in the National Guard,” Rep. Crenshaw continued.

“What did he do when the violence continued? He shut down all 28 public colleges and universities in the state for four days. Not to mention, he also did the serious work of instituting budgetary reforms to prevent the administrative bloat that we see in higher education,” he added.

Rep. Crenshaw further addressed concerns by commenting that people should confront “the taxpayer-funded DEI that has propped up left-wing illiberalism and enabled the explosion of antisemitism we see on college campuses.” He further explained that “most Americans know the left is crazy, but we have to make sure that conservatives look like the adults in the room.”

Rep. Crenshaw shared these comments on an Instagram caption, acknowledging that controversy has recently surrounding President Reagan, suggesting that President Reagan was not “conservative” enough for Republican voters.