Jennifer Welch called homeschooling a “Crazy Christian problem” on the I’ve Had It podcast. The Department of Education answered on X with a post defending homeschoolers and rejecting her attack.
Welch also described homeschooling as “Trickle down stupidity” and “MAGA on steroids.” She said America has a “fundamental crazy Christian problem,” and tied her criticism to “the freaks of the mega church” and “crazy indoctrination factories.”
Department of Education
The Department of Education wrote, “The proven value of homeschooling should never be dismissed as 'trickle-down stupidity.' The only thing that is stupid is your ignorance.” It also said homeschoolers have shown they can succeed “at the highest level time and time again.”
Ron DeSantis also weighed in, writing, “Not true. Also, in my experience homeschool students tend to be noticeably well-behaved.” The response turned Welch’s comments from a podcast exchange into a public dispute over how homeschooling is discussed by political figures and federal agencies.
Ivan LaBianca
Ivan LaBianca, a former homeschooler, said homeschoolers are “definitely not a monolith.” He said his family homeschooled him and his older brother for flexibility, and that he was largely taught by his mother, who has a master's degree in English and was a teacher, with his father helping out.
LaBianca said he was homeschooled until his final years of high school and learned woodworking, ceramics and building remote control airplanes. He also described much of his learning as “self-directed,” with a strong community of homeschooled children around him.
The exchange leaves one practical question at the center of the debate: how many homeschool families are actually driven by religion or politics, and how many choose it for other reasons? Welch’s remarks pushed that split into view, but LaBianca’s experience shows the group cannot be reduced to one profile.
