Biden tears into Republicans and Ron DeSantis for 'banning books'

President Joe Biden took a swing at hardline Republicans such as Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday, accusing them of banning books and stunting children's education.

Books have become a battleground in the nation's culture wars, as fringe conservatives scour library shelves for titles they consider offensive. 

'As a student of history, I never thought I'd be a president who was fighting against elected officials trying to ban and banning books,' Biden said during a White House event to honor teachers. 

'Empty shelves don't help kids learn very much. And I've never met a parent who wants a politician dictating what their kid can learn, what they can think, and who they can be.'

The event was held to celebrate  Council of Chief State School Officers' 2023 teachers of the year from each state. 

President Joe Biden took a swing at hardline Republicans, saying he never expected to be fighting elected officials who wanted to ban books they did not like

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has put himself at the forefront of the nation's culture wars

Tulsa, Oklahoma, math teacher Rebecka Peterson was named overall teacher of the year. 

Biden used the ceremony to calls on parents and teachers to stand up against 'politicians who try to score political points by banning books.'

It comes as conservatives have turned their attention to education.  

DeSantis has faced backlash after Florida passed a law last year requiring teachers to remove books that do not appear on a state-approved reading list until they are reviewed by an employee with a media specialist certificate.

Books pulls include Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel 'The Handmaid's Tale and Grace Lin's picture book 'Dim Sum for Everyone!'

Critics see the law as part of an effort to limit discussion about difficult questions around race and sexuality in public schools.

Last year the American Library Association said there had been a record number of attempts to ban books. It documented 1,269 demands to censor library books or resources, the highest number since it began compiling data.

Of those, more than half targeted books and materials in school libraries, classroom libraries or school curricula. 

In his speech, Biden talked about the challenges of the modern-day teacher, including gun violence.

'Teaching should not be a life-threatening profession,' he said in reference to the non-stop deadly school shootings.

'And educators should not need to be armed to feel safe in the classroom.'

Instead, Biden picked up on something Peterson herself talked about in her acceptance speech.

'They hold on to the lessons she taught them. Not only about integrals and derivatives, but about community connections about how all of us belong,' he said.

'Rebecca put a teacher's creed into words when she said there is no such thing as someone else's child. No such thing as someone else's child. 

'Our nation's children are all our children.

'As I often say, you teachers hold the kite strings that lift our national ambitions aloft.'