J.D. Vance hosts Harrisburg City Hall; says the quality of education today is a 'national scandal'

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHP) — Vice presidential candidate and Senator JD Vance held a town hall at Rock Church in Harrisburg on Saturday evening.

The main topic of the town hall was education, with the Trump campaign saying the Trump-Vance administration will “double down” on its commitment to ensuring every child in Pennsylvania has “access to a top education.”

“A majority of American children of any race are not receiving the quality of education of the United States of America,” Vance said. “That’s a national scandal.”

“Some of those public schools need to spend more on teachers and students and less on bureaucrats,” Vance said. “I’ve seen the statistics and when you look at the increase in school funding, very little of it goes to the students and very little of it goes to the teachers. It all goes to the administrators.”

“I do think it’s going to take a little bit of the teachers, the teachers’ unions, and the leadership of the teachers’ unions, to have a come-to-Jesus moment, no pun intended, and say to the American people, ‘Yes, we screwed up.'”

Vance spoke about the ways he plans to transition from the current education system if he is elected Vice President of the United States.

“One of the ways to solve this, I think, is to give scholarships, to give vouchers to every single parent, every grandparent, who has taken care of a child, so that they can choose the educational choice that makes the most sense for their child. their family.”

In a press release, the campaign issued the following statement:

An overwhelming majority of Pennsylvania parents support school choice, and more than 60,000 scholarships are awarded annually to K-12 students, giving them the opportunity to attend a school of choice. Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expanded school choice, empowering parents to make critical education decisions for their children and giving them the ability to use money from a 529 education savings account to cover K-12 college costs. cover secondary education. private or religious school of their choice.

Former President Trump earlier this month declared education the “civil rights issue of our time.”

Vance speaks at the local church at the invitation of the pastor, who is now making national headlines.

The Rev. Joshua C. Robertson said in a statement that he does not support Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.

Black communities don’t just need politicians who look like us. We need politicians who support the principles and policies that matter to us. Especially when it comes to the civil rights issue of our time: educational freedom.

Rev. Robertson also said he has worked to extend the invitation to Gov. Tim Walz, the vice presidential candidate on the Democratic side of the ticket. It has not yet been confirmed whether Walz will be present or not. Walz was in Scranton Friday night campaigning.

CBS 21 has a crew heading to the campaign event, which starts at 7:30 p.m

The visit marks a series of campaign events held across the state of Pennsylvania in recent weeks.

On October 15, he held a “Moms for America” town hall in Montgomery County.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE |JD Vance speaks at the Moms for America town hall in Pennsylvania

On the other side of the ticket, Second Gen. Doug Emhoff is also expected in Harrisburg to campaign on behalf of his wife, Kamala Harris.

GALLERY | Doug Emhoff knocks on Mechanicsburg doors on behalf of his wife’s campaign

The Harris campaign released a statement at Vance City Hall in Harrisburg, saying the following:

As Vice President Harris fights to expand opportunities for the next generation, Donald Trump and JD Vance’s Project 2025 would give Trump the unchecked power to raise costs for families by nearly $4,000 a year and shut down the Department of Education elimination, which would take away kindergarten for thousands of people. of children across the Commonwealth.

Elon Musk also visited Central Pennsylvania on Saturday evening on behalf of the Trump-Vance ticket.