I don’t know how he could possibly have this knowledge, but Kentucky’s Republican Governor Matt Bevin guarantees a child was sexually abused since many teachers were participating in a protest and therefore not watching those kids in school.

Thousands of teachers protested Friday to push legislators for more funding for education, just as they’ve done in several other states, and Bevin’s response was quick to blame them for anything that may have happened to students who stayed home because their school districts were closed for the day.

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin on the teacher rallies today. “I guarantee you somewhere in Kentucky today a child was sexually assaulted that was left at home because there was nobody there to watch them.” pic.twitter.com/Q4PpzFsTt2 — Marcus Green (@MarcusGreenWDRB) April 13, 2018

Gov. Matt Bevin, asked Friday about teachers leaving the classrooms to attend a protest rally in Frankfort, said, “I guarantee you somewhere in Kentucky today a child was sexually assaulted that was left at home because there was nobody there to watch them.” Louisville’s WDRB-TV interviewed Bevin outside the Capitol Friday about the rally. In the interview, Bevin said, “This is what’s crazy to me. Do you know how many hundreds of thousands of children today were left home alone? He then added that consequently a child in Kentucky was sexually assaulted. He added that he guaranteed a child was “physically assaulted or ingested poison because they were home alone because a single parent didn’t have any money to take care of them.”

That’s a new way to guilt teachers into accepting substandard wages.

We shouldn’t be too surprised. After all, this is the same conservative Christian governor whose radical solution to ending violence was for “prayer groups” to patrol troubled communities.

At least some politicians in Kentucky are pointing out how crazy it is to blame teachers, who are fighting for improved wages and worker protections, for sexual assaults that may or may not have even happened.

“It’s entirely inappropriate and perverse that the man sitting in the governorship would criticize Kentuckians who stood up today for teachers, public employees and our public education by insinuating that their presence in Frankfort today caused a child to be sexually assaulted,” Kentucky Democratic Party Executive Director Mary Nishimuta said. “His insults of teachers over the last year have been beneath the decorum of any respectable elected official. This rhetoric has crossed a line. As a mother, suggesting children were abused as a prop for his political rhetoric is disturbing and absurdly in poor taste.”

I couldn’t agree more. By Bevins’ logic, we may as well blame teachers for not babysitting kids over the summer. And I guess districts can’t shut down on account of bad weather or teacher institute days anymore. He doesn’t realize that teachers are fighting for a livable wage so that they can take better care of their own families. At least he’s being exposed as the irrational, petty man he is.

It’s no surprise that a man who promotes Ark Encounter has this much contempt for real educators. Maybe next time, he’ll think harder before blaming teachers for sexual assaults he makes up in his head. I wouldn’t count on it, though.

