When Governor Jared Polis, a Democrat from Colorado, told Will Cain he supports President Trump’s school choice plan, it sent a shockwave through the usual political script—because for once a Democrat put children ahead of party lines and common sense politics. Polis’ appearance on The Will Cain Show makes plain what many of us already know: parents, not bureaucrats, should decide where their children learn and grow.
Polis has moved to opt Colorado into the federal tax-credit scholarship program touted by the Trump administration, calling it a “real boom of investment in kids” and signaling a pragmatic willingness to use federal tools to expand opportunities. This isn’t a reckless giveaway; it’s a chance to channel private donations and federal incentives into tangible tutoring, after-school programs, and scholarships that get kids out of failing situations.
Make no mistake: this was a political gut-check for Democrats who reflexively defend an education status quo that has failed millions of students. Polis admits he doesn’t love vouchers, and yet he recognized the practical benefit of unlocking new dollars for Colorado families, proving conservatives right—choice is popular, practical, and powerful. The governor’s move should shame the rest of the party into choosing children over ideology.
Predictably, the education cartel and left-wing activists cried foul, warning that tax-credit programs could be a slippery slope toward vouchers and less oversight. Their true fear isn’t policy nuance; it’s accountability and competition. When schools and unions are forced to compete for students, taxpayers finally get better results and families get freedom—something the education establishment has always fought.
This moment is part of a broader national shift: Republican-led states and federal proposals are rolling out tax-credit and voucher-like options that expand charter schools and scholarship programs, and they’re winning because they put kids first. Conservatives who want a stronger America should seize this momentum, not cede it to technocrats or billionaires who pretend to champion public schools while undermining parental choice.
Hardworking Americans know the truth—parents know their children best and should have real power over their education, not just slogans and lecture-room lectures from distant officials. Thank Governor Polis for doing what far too few in his party will: putting families before factional loyalty, and giving Colorado kids a shot at a better future. Now it’s time for conservatives and freedom-loving Democrats alike to push even harder for policies that expand opportunity, restore accountability, and make education a ladder, not a cage.
