Published May 1, 2024
College quads have been turned into tent cities, university buildings have been taken over by groups of students unfurling banners supporting intifada, and campus protests are pockmarked with calls for violence and antisemitism across the country. This gives Republicans an easy argument to make about why voters shouldn’t place Democrats in charge of our key civic institutions. The attack ads write themselves: If they can’t keep their ivy-covered campuses safe, how can they protect you?
The GOP coalition is increasingly attracting voters without a four-year degree, who may have little sympathy for young people treating their time on campus as an opportunity for anti-Israeli activism rather than education. Voters who didn’t go to elite schools and see a Democratic coalition reluctant to criticize its unruly campus wings may find themselves culturally more at home with the party seen as favoring civic peace. So far, the Democratic Party hasn’t risen to the political challenge of disavowing the left-wing activists who could hurt them this fall.
House Speaker Mike Johnson is one Republican who senses the political opportunity. On Wednesday, he led the House in a vote on the Antisemitism Awareness Act. On Tuesday, he announced that House committees would investigate university policies around protecting Jewish students, including whether institutions should continue to receive federal funds if they haven’t taken sufficient measures to stop the harassment.
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Patrick T. Brown is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, where his work with the Life and Family Initiative focuses on developing a robust pro-family economic agenda and supporting families as the cornerstone of a healthy and flourishing society.
