Former President Donald Trump has offered to host a group of parents at one of his golf courses after members of the Loudoun County School Board in Virginia expressed interest in limiting public comment sessions during meetings.
During a meeting on Thursday, two Democrat-endorsed board members voiced support for placing stricter rules on the two public comment sessions that the board usually has each month. This comes after the school board voted six to there at their last meeting earlier this month to turn off their livestream camera during public comment.
Trump, who is the presumed GOP presidential nominee in the 2024 election, took to his social media platform, Truth Social, on Sunday to voice his support for the parents of students in Loudoun County.
“If the wonderful parents of students in the Loudoun County School System would want to gather along the great Potomac River, at Trump National Golf Club, under the beautifully flying American Flag, for a gathering, or a meeting, there can be no more magnificent or significant place to do so, AS MY GUEST!” he wrote. “Just let my Club Manager, Trent, know when. Have fun. SAVE THE STUDENTS!!!”
Newsweek reached out to Trump’s campaign via email, Loudoun County Public Schools via social media direct message and the Loudoun County School Board via telephone for comment.
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School board members April Chandler and Anne Donohue voiced interest in implementing stricter rules regarding public comment during Thursday’s meeting, suggesting that it would improve efficiency while getting through topics.
“In the interest of keeping meetings focused, productive and efficient, many divisions across the Commonwealth of Virginia have more stringent policies around public comment,” Chandler said.
Chandler gave examples of how other school boards in Virginia limit public comment.
“Many limit comments to 30 minutes only. There’s one division that only allows for 20 minutes public comment and sometimes public comment is limited to individuals to only speak on a topic once,” Chandler said.
During the two public comment sessions each month, parents, students, teachers and community members are given one minute each to address issues with the school board. This can add up depending on how many people speak. According to local ABC affiliate WJLA, public comments sessions have lasted between 30 to 60 minutes during recent board meetings.
Chandler continued: “Some [school boards] require that all commenters submit their specific comments in writing to the board and the chair is allowed to choose whether or not those comments can be made public.
“And there’s even a division that asked the speakers to first try to resolve their issues with the superintendent before bringing it before the board. We are aware that there is at least one division that has said that they will cut the microphones if the speakers are too emotional.”
Donohue said during Thursday’s meeting: “I do fear that it can at times distract from or derail our work as we try to get through all of our agenda items in a board meeting.”
Independent school board member Lauren Shernoff said she was “deeply concerned” about the message the board would be sending if they limited public comment.
“I find it interesting that we want to compare to other districts for this policy, but we don’t want to compare to other districts for the cameras,” said Shernoff.
Shernoff and Republican-endorsed board members Kari LaBell and Deana Griffiths voted against turning off cameras during public comment sessions.
At the time, Shernoff said: “Over the past four years, I think decisions were made in general to make the public feel less than and so when they came to speak to a meeting, and then they weren’t shown, I think that furthered that feeling, as we have heard, so I feel by turning them back on we can start to restore some of that trust and build back transparency.”
Virginia Gove. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, called the Loudoun County School Board’s decision to turn off the camera during public comment “stunning.”
“Parents must be able to not only know what’s going on, but they should be able to express their opinions. I’m going to work to make sure that I preserve parents’ ability to have voices to the school board that are seen and heard because I know who the school boards work for and that’s parents,” Youngkin told WJLA on Monday.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.