February 15, 2013: WASHINGTON, D.C. - Family Research Council today announced that it opposes President Obama's universal preschool proposal for all children in the U.S. Of the president's State of the Union comments about preschool, and his campaigning in Georgia in support of universal preschool Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said:
"President Obama has again endorsed a government solution to a spiritual and familial problem. President Obama and his big government supporters think that starting school at a younger age will help solve society's problems. But a study of the federal preschool program Head Start shows that for all the money spent on the program it had little effect on educational outcomes after preschool concluded.
"FRC's Drs. Henry Potrykus and Pat Fagan have found that family intactness 'is roughly as important as high school education and more important than college education in influencing outcomes of public policy interest.'
"Children need parental involvement and attention. They need strong families. What a four-yeary'old needs more than anything is a loving, secure home with a mom and dad who love each other. There is no better way to start a young life. We cannot have secure, well-prepared, confident children if we continue to sustain a culture where no-fault divorce, cohabitation and out-of-wedlock births are the norm.
"We urge the president and his allies to instead focus on another line from the State of the Union address. President Obama said he planned to use tax credits to 'encourage fatherhood - because what makes you a man isn't the ability to conceive a child; it's having the courage to raise one.' We completely agree. That's the sort of policy proposal that Americans of all political colors can get behind, and we urge the president to put his time and energy into promoting family formation, not further deficit spending."
FRC's Marriage & Religion Research Institute just released its third annual "Index of Family Belonging and Rejection," which shows the breakdown of the family in each state and the 45 largest U.S. cities. To read the Index click here: http://marri.us/index-2013
To read the MARRI study "U.S. Social Policy: Dependence on the Family" click here: http://www.marri.us/policy-2013
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