Marco Rubio signs ‘Parent Pledge’ supporting parental rights in schools

Florida Politics | By Staff Reports | October 26, 2022

The pledge promises to honor parents’ rights to direct the education, medical care and moral upbringing of their children.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio has signed the Moms for Liberty “Parent Pledge,” which honors parental rights.

Moms for Liberty is urging all 2022 elected officials and candidates for elected office to sign the pledge. The pledge promises to “honor the fundamental rights of parents, including, but not limited to the right to direct the education, medical care and moral upbringing of their children.”

“Parents’ voices matter, despite what teachers unions and the NEA (National Education Association) try to tell you. Now more than ever, we need leaders who are willing to push back and stand up for parents’ rights to care for their children, something so fundamental to a healthy society,” Moms for Liberty Co-Founders Tina Descovich and Tiffany Justice said in a statement.

“We applaud the leaders across our country that are proudly signing our ‘Parent Pledge’ to show their support for more parental involvement and less government overreach in our children’s lives. We encourage voters to look at these names and know who will have your back come November.”

Earlier this year, the Legislature passed and Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the “Parental Rights in Education” (HB 1557) measure, dubbed by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law. It bans classroom “instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity” for students in kindergarten through third grade, or “in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards” for older students.

Those who support such measures, like Moms for Liberty, argue the law shields children from inappropriate discussions in the classroom and leaves decisions about such education to parents.

A lawsuit challenging Florida’s law has twice been dismissed by a federal judge, including most recently last week. The challenge argued the law violates constitutional rights by limiting the ability of students to discuss their LGBTQ families in school settings. The defendants have until Nov. 3 to file an amended suit.

In addition to Rubio, several other incumbents and candidates have recently signed the pledge, including:

— Michael Beltran, state Representative, House District 70

— Kevin Stitt, Oklahoma Governor

— Dan Cox, candidate for Maryland Governor

— Tudor Dixon, candidate for Michigan Governor

— Doug Mastriano, candidate for Pennsylvania Governor

— Lee Zeldin, candidate for New York Governor

— David Bullard, Oklahoma state Senate, District 6

— Nathan Dahm, Oklahoma state Senate, District 33

— Jake Merrick, Oklahoma state Senate, District 22

— Lana Theis, Michigan state Senate, District 22

— Carrie Lewis DelRosso, Pennsylvania state Representative and candidate for Lieutenant Governor

— Trent Kittleman, Maryland state Delegate, District 9A

— Mike Weisgram, South Dakota state Representative, District 24

The full list of candidates and elected officials who have signed the pledge can be found here.