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families
JD Vance's Solution to Childcare Crisis? 'Maybe Grandpa or Grandma Wants to Help'
"You're on your own. You ain't getting shit from us. Call grandma," one Democratic congressman translated.
Sep 05, 2024
In his latest comments on parenthood and young families, Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance on Wednesday weighed in on how to best help parents who struggle to pay for childcare—but instead of offering a policy solution, the U.S. senator from Ohio punted the obligation to grandparents and other extended family members across the country.
At an event hosted by right-wing activist Charlie Kirk of Turning Point Action in Mesa, Arizona, Vance replied to a question about lowering childcare costs by saying he wants to "make it easier for families to choose whatever model they want."
But Vance appeared to base his answer on the assumption that what families want—and what they haven't already considered on their own—is childcare help from their family members.
"One of the ways that you might be able to relieve a little bit of pressure on people who are paying so much for daycare is make it so that—maybe, like, grandma or grandpa wants to help out a little bit more, or maybe there's an aunt or uncle who wants to help out a little more," said Vance. "If that happens, you relieve some of the pressure on all the resources that we're spending at daycare."
In other words, said U.S. Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.): "You're on your own. You ain't getting shit from us. Call grandma."
The comments came weeks after a 2020 podcast interview with Vance resurfaced, in which he agreed that "the whole purpose of the postmenopausal female" is to take care of grandchildren.
Vance didn't address what steps might be taken to allow more grandparents to provide childcare for their families—or how the idea might conflict with other Republican policy proposals, such as raising the retirement age or cutting Social Security benefits.
"Maybe Grandma and Grandma still work," said author Jacie Floyd on the social media platform X. "Maybe Grandma and Grandpa have health issues. Maybe Grandma and Grandpa live 1,000 miles away. Maybe Grandma and Grandpa don't want to. The [Republican Party] shouldn’t be planning Grandma and Grandpa's retirement for them."
A Pew Research poll found last year that 19% of Americans aged 65 or older were still working, almost a twofold increase over the late 1980s, and other surveys have shown that nearly 43% of people between 55 and 64 don't have retirement savings accounts—likely making them unable to spend much time providing childcare for working families.
According to Illumine, an app used by parents and childcare providers, a 2022 survey found that 72% of U.S. parents were paying at least 10% of their income on childcare, and 51% were paying more than 20%. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services defines "affordable" care as costing no more than 7% of a household's income.
At the event in Mesa, enlisting the help of grandparents wasn't Vance's only proposal for the vast majority of parents who are spending too much for daycare. He also suggested lowering the hiring standards for childcare workers, ostensibly enabling providers to pay them less and charge families less for their early childhood services.
"We've got a lot of people who love kids, who would love to take care of kids, but they can't, either because they don't have access to the education they need," said Vance, "or maybe more importantly, because the state government says you need to have some ridiculous certification that has nothing to do with taking care of kids. So, empower people to get the skills they need, don't force every early childcare specialist to go and get a six-year college degree where they've got a whole lot of debt and Americans are much poorer because they're paying out the wazoo for daycare."
Vance didn't elaborate on the "ridiculous certification" that childcare workers should be able to forgo. Requirements for employees in the industry vary from state to state and can include training in CPR and first aid, food handling, and recognizing and reporting child abuse and neglect. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a high school diploma or equivalent is the typical educational requirement for entry-level childcare workers, and the median pay in the industry was just $30,370 per year or $14.60 per hour as of 2023.
"Vance basically spends two minutes saying, 'SUCK IT UP, POORS!" saidUSA Today columnist Rex Huppke. "Daycare costs too much cause you demand 'qualified' providers who aren't 'total randos' with 'no childcare experience.'"
The reality on the ground in states like Michigan shows a very different picture than Vance's suggestion that childcare centers are paying workers too much to make their services affordable for families.
With 85% of childcare funding coming from the federal government instead of the state in Michigan, Kimberly Esper of Little Hawks Childcare and Learning Center toldMid-Michigan Now on Wednesday that many centers struggle to pay staff fairly while keeping their daycare services running.
"It's a balance that I think every childcare center is struggling with right now," said Esper.
Last month, Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, unveiled an economic agenda including an expanded child tax credit. Vance has expressed support for such a policy, but missed a vote on a related bill earlier this year, prompting Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) to denounce him as a "phony."
Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), who introduced the Child Care for Every Community Act, contrasted Vance's proposals on Wednesday with those of the Democrats.
Rep. Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) added that "families deserve leaders who understand the importance of making childcare more accessible and affordable."
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'Families' Needs Over Corporate Greed': US Childcare Providers, Parents Hold Day of Action
"If our leaders don't step up and legislate a solution to this crisis, we all will pay the price of an underfunded system," said organizers.
May 13, 2024
Flanked by her fellow childcare providers from Minnesota's Iron Range region at a press conference in St. Paul, Shawntel Gruba on Monday explained that the childcare center she runs had shut its doors for the day to "demonstrate how vitally important childcare is to our community."
"We are the workforce behind the workforce," said Gruba, CEO of Iron Range Tykes in Mountain Iron. "Without us, no one goes to work."
Gruba is one of more than 1,300 childcare providers across the U.S. who are participating in the National Day Without Childcare on Monday, organized by grassroots group Community Change Action and supported by other organizations including the National Domestic Workers Alliance, the National Women's Law Center (NWLC), and the Main Street Alliance.
At the press conference before the local coalition boarded a bus to St. Paul for a rally, Gruba explained that 5 out of 7 childcare centers across the Iron Range are participating in the Day Without Childcare, which organizers said was taking place "with the support of the families" served by caregivers.
On the third annual Day Without Childcare, providers are calling for emergency federal childcare funding, nearly eight months after Republicans in Congress allowed billions of dollars in pandemic-era funding to expire.
"Childcare is expensive to provide, just like K-12 [education] is expensive to provide," said Gruba. "Our main source of income to meet those expenses is what families pay. The national and state recommendation for affordable childcare is that no family should pay more than 7% of their annual income for childcare. Families are paying two, three, to even four times more than that."
According to an analysis published by the NWLC earlier this month, in states where legislatures have not passed increased childcare allocations since last September, nearly a quarter of families are now unable to find or pay for care as providers have had to limit enrollment, shut down, or raise prices.
"If our leaders don't step up and legislate a solution to this crisis, we all will pay the price of an underfunded system," said Community Change Action.
Organizers are demanding an equitable childcare system built on racial and gender justice, thriving wages for childcare providers—whose median hourly wage in the U.S. is $14.60—and affordable and accessible childcare for all families.
Community Change Action called on the federal government, including Republican lawmakers, to finally prioritize "families' needs over corporate greed."
"Thanks to our decades of organizing, we made progress with the Democratic-led Congress and Biden administration to put our childcare system on a more secure footing," said Community Change Action co-president Dorian Warren. "Meanwhile, some members of the GOP are refusing to pass emergency funding for childcare, pushing our system to the brink of collapse once again. But time is running out on the game of politics they're playing with our lives. We will demand that they do their jobs and prioritize families. Our childcare system is in crisis—but our childcare movement is stronger than ever."
Warren said he and his wife, who rely on an early childhood education center, "organized the providers, parents, and children" at the facility "to walk out and participate in a mini march around the building" to mark the Day Without Childcare.
"As parents, we need to stand with early educators because our system is on the brink of collapse," said Warren. "Providers and families' livelihoods are hanging in the balance. We need a fully funded, 21st-century childcare system that allows everyone to thrive."
More than 80 events were planned around the country, including rallies, marches, and press conferences to highlight childcare providers' demand for more public funding to solve the childcare crisis, which, according to a report last year by ReadyNation, sucks $122 billion out of the nation's economy as parents are forced out of jobs.
Childcare providers and supporters marched through New York City to Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul's office, rallying against the omission of workforce funds in the state budget, while grassroots group SPACEs in Action organized lobby visits to Washington, D.C.'s City Council building. Teachers, children, and advocates rallied and lobbied for the restoration of $70 million to the D.C. Early Childhood Education Pay Equity Fund, which had helped bring childcare providers' salaries in line with that of public school teachers.
On Sunday night, the group also projected the message, "Childcare Is Everyone's Business" onto the building.
Community Change Action said the number of participants at dozens of public actions this year would set a record for the National Day Without Childcare.
"It is crucial that policymakers understand the vital role early learning centers play in our communities. We are not simply businesses: We are essential educational institutions deserving of adequate funding and support," said Terri Simms, who closed her childcare center in Dayton, Ohio for the day. "I urge you to stand with us in advocating for meaningful changes to our childcare system that reflects the true value of our services. Our survival depends on it, as does the future of the countless families who rely on us for quality early childhood education."
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The Government Won’t Let My Wife and Me Raise Our Family in the United States
As it considers Department of State v. Muñoz, I hope the Supreme Court listens to our stories and ensures that U.S. citizens will have access to a fairer process when seeking to live with their non-citizen spouses.
Apr 23, 2024
When my first wife passed away more than a decade ago, it was one of the hardest times in my life. I became a single father, and while it’s been my life’s joy to raise my kids, it has been lonely. That changed when Deborah came into my life.
We met on a Christian website and immediately fell in love. Despite me living in Missouri and Deborah in Kenya, we had an instant connection. She is beautiful, caring, and smart as a whip. We started talking every day and quickly realized we wanted to spend our lives together.
We are both preachers, and our faith has given us strength as we navigate life’s challenges. In 2018, I flew to Kenya and we got married at a big church wedding in her parent’s village. I adopted Deborah’s daughter from a previous marriage, and in 2020, we had our own beautiful baby girl.
As an American citizen, I never thought I would be forced to choose between love and country. I am an Army and Navy veteran, and it feels like a betrayal of my service that I can’t live with my family in my own country.
Our family has a near-perfect life except for one thing: A consular officer in the U.S. Embassy in Kenya will not grant Deborah’s visa to live in the United States. To complicate things further, my stepdaughter’s visa was approved. She now lives with me and my eldest daughter outside Kansas City while our toddler lives in Kenya with her mother.
My desires are simple: I want to live with my wife and our children. I trust God has a plan, but that doesn’t make living apart less difficult. We spend hours on the phone every day, and I go to Kenya twice a year, but it’s not the same as living together. I have a good union job on a Ford assembly line in a community I love, and if I moved to Kenya I wouldn’t be able to provide for my family the way they deserve.
As an American citizen, I never thought I would be forced to choose between love and country. I am an Army and Navy veteran, and it feels like a betrayal of my service that I can’t live with my family in my own country.
Never once have Deborah and I doubted our commitment to each other, but it isn’t easy to function as a family spread across two continents. Thankfully, my wife and I are both stubborn as an ox. It’s part of what makes us a good match, and it means we’re never going to stop fighting for our family. We know we’re meant to be together; it’s just a matter of when and how.
That’s why I am helping challenge these unjust family separations. With the support of the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) and American Families United, I contributed my story to a friend of the court brief in the Supreme Court case Department of State v. Muñoz. Like my family, the husband and wife at the center of this case have been separated for years because of a decision of a single consular officer. The Supreme Court is considering whether U.S. citizens have a constitutionally protected interest in a visa for their spouse.
For families in our situation, the decision in this case could be life-changing. The Court will hear the case April 23, with a decision expected in the summer. As they consider the case, I hope the Supreme Court justices listen to our stories and ensure that U.S. citizens will have access to a fairer process when seeking to live with their non-citizen spouses in the United States.
For now, my family and I continue to pray every day that we’ll be able to live together soon. We hope you’ll join us.
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