Is Cooper Keeping Kids Out of School Because He’s Afraid of the Far-Left NCAE?

Sec. Cohen repeated the scientific consensus that kids need to be back in the classroom

But Cooper refused to answer which metrics must be met to reopen all schools

Today, we apparently know why: The far-left NCAE just launched an all-out blitz to keep schools shuttered

Raleigh, N.C. — At yesterday’s press conference, Secretary of Health and Human Services Mandy Cohen repeated the scientific consensus, which is overwhelming and has been for months, that children need to be back in the classroom.

But Gov. Roy Cooper refused to answer even basic questions about what metrics the state must hit to allow all parents the option of sending their kids back for full-time, in-person instruction. The Governor also deviated from his months-long insistence that locals can’t make decisions because “the virus doesn’t respect county lines.”

The natural question is, Why would Gov. Cooper assert full control over a small issue like playground reopenings, but pass off responsibility for reopening schools?

It appears we now have our answer.

Today, the News & Observer reported that the far-left NCAE will “fight against our principals, our school boards and our school district administrators to keep schools from adopting Plan A.”

Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) said, “On every single COVID decision, the Governor refused to let locals make any decisions for themselves. But now, on perhaps the most critical decision of all — whether to reopen schools — the Governor has abandoned all responsibility and passed off decision making to local districts.”

Berger continued, “Any reasonable person would look at what’s going on and conclude that Gov. Cooper is harming children by keeping them out of school because he’s afraid of angering his allies in the far-left NCAE.”

Gov. Cooper needs to grant all parents the option of full-time, in-person instruction. He’s refused to do that, so he needs to tell the people of North Carolina the exact metrics that must be hit for him to decide to reopen all schools.

The Cooper Administration offered a weak, barely-believable explanation for why they refuse to cite specific metrics: that it’s about “more than metrics,” and that plans and protocols are also a factor.

But WFAE reported just two weeks ago that Gov. Cooper gave breweries the green light to reopen without “a written plan from the North Carolina Craft Brewers Guild.”

Gov. Cooper appears to be barely concealing the fact that his decisions on school reopenings are driven by his political allegiance to the far-left NCAE, not the best interest of children.