A few weeks ago, we pointed to a Texas Freedom Network post reporting that the Texas State Board of Education was going to appoint David Barton to a social studies curriculum “expert” panel, which was absurd given Barton’s flagrant lack of expertise on anything other than misrepresenting history in order to further his own right-wing political agenda.
But perhaps nothing better sums up the absurdity of this move than this article from OneNewsNow, considering that just about every claim and statement it contains is laughable, starting with its title: “History scholar hopes to revamp Texas curriculum”:
WallBuilders is a Texas-based conservative organization “dedicated to presenting America’s forgotten history and heroes.” Organization president David Barton has once again been selected by the Texas State Board of Education to review proposed history curriculum and prepare a report as the board reviews new standards for history in The Lone Star State. He says the new curriculum currently proposed for the state is in shambles.
“For example, the panel managed to eliminate all references to free enterprise out of our history, social study, government textbooks, and that’s the type of things we find. The religious bigotry that’s there, preference for secular stuff, ignoring the religious foundations,” he notes.“There’s a mis-description of the types and forms of government that we have. There’s no mention of American exceptionalism — the fact that we are the most successful nation in the history of the world with a government that bears fruit to that.”
Barton expects outside groups to “holler and scream” about his recommendations to fix those errors due to the fact that he is a Christian and a conservative. But he adds that he and other members of the panel will give recommendations that are so historically accurate that board members will have a hard time refuting them.
Seriously, the assertion that Barton’s recommendations will be “so historically accurate that board members will have a hard time refuting them” made me laugh out loud considering that being accurate has never been a particular concern for Barton in the past.
