Loudoun County central to debate between McConnell, Garland over threats to school boards
LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. (7News) — Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell and President Joe Biden’s Attorney General are sparring over a new directive to the FBI --- and the Loudoun county school board is in the center of the debate.
At the heart of this are allegations from school board members, including in Loudoun county, where some school board members say they’ve received threats from parents.
Last week, U.S. Attorney General Garland announced he was directing the FBI to work with state and federal leaders to address and prosecute these alleged threats when appropriate.
In a memo, the Attorney General said threats against public servants are not only illegal, they run counter to our nation’s core values.
McConnell is taking issue with Garland’s memo.
In a letter to the Attorney General, McConnell said the AG’s memo’s “ominous rhetoric” doesn’t reflect the reality of what we have seen at school boards across the country in recent months.
McConnell said parents absolutely should be telling their local schools what to teach – whether that’s by election or petitioning their government.
McConnell said telling elected officials they’re wrong is democracy, not intimidation.
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The Senate Minority Leader added that in Garland’s very backyard of Virginia, there have been “shocking efforts” by public officials to organize for the intimidation and harassment of parents who want a better education for their children.
McConnell said one of the Loudoun County schoolboard members participated in a Facebook group that compiled a list of parents who are opposed to critical race theory and discussed hacking their websites.
It seems McConnell is referring to school board member Beth Barts who is facing a recall effort for this particular allegation.
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McConnell said he wants answers to several questions before Garland appears at the upcoming Senate Judiciary Committee, including what is the Civil Rights Division doing to investigate a Loudoun County school board member, the county prosecutor, and current and former teachers who McConnell said banded together to intimidate parents who opposed the teaching of CRT.
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On Monday, 7News asked the school district for comment. We have not heard back yet.