I agree we should add educational reform to VDH's prescriptions for improving Conservatism in this country.  In fact, in a recent commentary on this site I somewhat jokingly recommended we transfer the Department of Education to the Pentagon, as the crisis in K-12 education is a national security concern.  Clearly, there is a continuing crisis in education in this country, and how that crisis is resolved is of vital importance to Conservatives.  Politically, I am moderately conservative, but I am near apoplectic at the demise of public education in this country.  I'm not sure why this was left off Professor Hanson's list as he has written extensively on the problems endemic in post-secondary schools in this country.  I'm fairly sure he would agree that educational reform, at all levels, is necessary for sustaining Conservatism as a viable political framework for good governance.  Furthermore, it is necessary for sustaining a viable future for this country.  The question is, where do we start?

We start by electing a president who doesn't treat educational reform as a political crusade designed to obtain partisan advantage.  W Bush treated the Department of Education as an orphan step-child, full of liberal minded reformers and idealogues  (which it is).  As a consequence, he essentially tried to do away with the Department, and when that didn't work, simply ignored it.  Not exactly a testament to good leadership, but for him -- par for the course.  What do you expect from someone who was never a serious student himself?  (I love it when he reassures us he has assessed the problem, the person or whatever, and his "gut" tells him this or that.  As he possesses a fairly non-critical intellect, by "gut" he may in fact be referring to his GI tract).  No need to discuss Bill Clinton and the Department of Education.  If he didn't create the monster it now is, he certainly overfed it and took it off its leash.

The Democratic candidates have of course promoted their vaunted educational plans, which translate into more of the same.  To my knowledge, John McCain has not formally announced his plans for reforming education in this country.  Not to worry.  For this problem, and many others, I firmly believe he is the go-to guy.  He won't policy-wonk this to death because that's been tried and failed.  He won't ignore the problem because that's not his style.  I believe he'll put someone in charge of the Department of Education who will actually reform it, and back that person to the hilt.  He is a firm believer in leadership making a difference in solving problems.  To whit, General Abrams in Viet Nam, General Petreus in Iraq, and Ronald Reagan for our own country.   His choice to run the department will not be a political idealogue because politicization of the content and delivery of education is the underlying problem.

So who would that person be?  Another PhD Ed with yet another nouveau curriculum to hock, written by someone who hasn't taught students for decades?  How about a Classicist/Historian who has always promoted critical thinking and empirical judgement as the hallmarks of a successful education?  Could this be why VDH left educational reform off this list, as he is advising JM on this issue.  As Frodo says, there is always hope.