Many American voters are currently struggling to square the circle of postmodern marriage, in which both partners attempt to maintain careers, raise children, and stay connected while spending more time in virtual reality. US President Joe Biden could win over this cohort by focusing his campaign on expanding childcare.
NEW HAVEN – Until the twenty-first century, people took for granted that their most meaningful relationships – with family, friends, and fellow workers – would involve face-to-face engagement. But the internet revolution, which unfolded with breathtaking speed, challenged this premise. Many of us now spend at least four hours per day online. Since we need about six hours of sleep per night, this leaves us with only 14 hours for real-world connection.
Even before the rise of the internet, it was tough to satisfy the competing demands on our attention. Our bosses would fire us if we didn’t meet their expectations, but we risked neglecting our loved ones if we worked overtime. Now that we are spending even less time interacting with others in the flesh, while simultaneously working harder, domestic disappointments will inevitably pile up, increasing the odds of a family break-up.
This is especially true in an era of increasing gender equality. For many people, the idea that men work outside the home while women take care of the children seems woefully outdated. Instead, they are organizing their lives to enable both intimate partners to embark on meaningful careers while sustaining loving relationships with their kids – and each other.
Easier said than done, at least in the United States. According to some estimates, around 40% of American marriages currently end in divorce. These break-ups can have a particularly shattering impact on young children, for whom a stable home life is essential to developing a sense of self-worth. Nevertheless, the US has failed to take this predictable tragedy seriously, as evidenced by the lack of support for working parents. In particular, the government has resisted efforts to increase the availability of affordable childcare. Before the COVID-19 crisis, only 40% of three-year-olds, 68% of four-year-olds and 86% of five-year-olds in America were enrolled in preschool.
Europeans, by contrast, have been far more successful in sustaining postmodern family life. The French have led the way, creating a nationwide system of free preschool over the past three decades. Parents now send their three-year-olds to neighborhood centers called écoles maternelles, staffed with personnel who have special training in child psychology. These educators follow a small group of children over the next three years, getting to know their individual strengths and weaknesses and helping them develop the confidence to confront the challenges of first grade.
This high-quality early-education program has had a remarkable effect. Rigorous empirical research shows that children from upper-income households benefit greatly from école maternelle, but that children from lower-income households, especially those who enter preschool with comparatively limited verbal expression, experience even greater gains. In fact, the skills gap between these groups almost disappears by the time they start primary school.
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Moreover, President Emmanuel Macron has expanded France’s commitments to the nation’s poorest children. On first glance, this should be surprising, since he relied on middle- and upper-income voters to gain his electoral triumphs in 2017 and 2022. Nevertheless, he inaugurated a breakthrough initiative that is enabling some single parents to gain childcare for their two-year-olds – and is now proposing a more sweeping reform that will enable these children to gain government support. In taking these steps, Macron is calling upon his upper-income constituency to reflect on their own child-rearing anxieties, and recognize that they have a responsibility, as thoughtful democratic citizens, to assist the most vulnerable children in their struggle for a meaningful existence.
No less remarkably, President Joe Biden has been making the same call for civic responsibility in the US. When he entered the White House in 2021, his American Families Plan proposed spending $200 billion over four years for free universal preschool for all three- and four-year-olds. But the proposal was eliminated from the final bill, owing to Republican opposition to Biden’s “budget-busting” measures.
In a recent speech, however, Biden re-emphasized his commitment to childcare reform, promising to use a second term to push for increased investment in early education. The speech was aimed at a particular audience: the caregivers in attendance. But making universal preschool a centerpiece of his re-election campaign could help Biden beat Donald Trump, the Republican Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, in November’s election.
After all, vast numbers of voters are currently struggling to square the circle of postmodern marriage. Access to affordable childcare would make it easier for them to manage the inevitable tensions that arise from our current way of living without resorting to divorce. And even if a couple does break up, their children would benefit from stable relationships with trusted caregivers.
Biden’s campaign promise of universal preschool won’t be enough to convince committed Trump supporters to abandon their champion. But the upcoming election depends in large part on undecided voters in key swing states, and this cohort may be won over by Biden’s repeated emphasis on expanding childcare, and their support may be enough to provide him with a narrow victory in November.
Despite pollsters’ grim predictions, Biden may well prevent Trump’s return to the White House by promoting investment in the country’s youngest citizens. If re-elected, and assuming he maintains a majority in Congress, Biden could pass a transformative childcare initiative that would improve Americans’ life prospects for a long time to come.
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NEW HAVEN – Until the twenty-first century, people took for granted that their most meaningful relationships – with family, friends, and fellow workers – would involve face-to-face engagement. But the internet revolution, which unfolded with breathtaking speed, challenged this premise. Many of us now spend at least four hours per day online. Since we need about six hours of sleep per night, this leaves us with only 14 hours for real-world connection.
Even before the rise of the internet, it was tough to satisfy the competing demands on our attention. Our bosses would fire us if we didn’t meet their expectations, but we risked neglecting our loved ones if we worked overtime. Now that we are spending even less time interacting with others in the flesh, while simultaneously working harder, domestic disappointments will inevitably pile up, increasing the odds of a family break-up.
This is especially true in an era of increasing gender equality. For many people, the idea that men work outside the home while women take care of the children seems woefully outdated. Instead, they are organizing their lives to enable both intimate partners to embark on meaningful careers while sustaining loving relationships with their kids – and each other.
Easier said than done, at least in the United States. According to some estimates, around 40% of American marriages currently end in divorce. These break-ups can have a particularly shattering impact on young children, for whom a stable home life is essential to developing a sense of self-worth. Nevertheless, the US has failed to take this predictable tragedy seriously, as evidenced by the lack of support for working parents. In particular, the government has resisted efforts to increase the availability of affordable childcare. Before the COVID-19 crisis, only 40% of three-year-olds, 68% of four-year-olds and 86% of five-year-olds in America were enrolled in preschool.
Europeans, by contrast, have been far more successful in sustaining postmodern family life. The French have led the way, creating a nationwide system of free preschool over the past three decades. Parents now send their three-year-olds to neighborhood centers called écoles maternelles, staffed with personnel who have special training in child psychology. These educators follow a small group of children over the next three years, getting to know their individual strengths and weaknesses and helping them develop the confidence to confront the challenges of first grade.
This high-quality early-education program has had a remarkable effect. Rigorous empirical research shows that children from upper-income households benefit greatly from école maternelle, but that children from lower-income households, especially those who enter preschool with comparatively limited verbal expression, experience even greater gains. In fact, the skills gap between these groups almost disappears by the time they start primary school.
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Access every new PS commentary, our entire On Point suite of subscriber-exclusive content – including Longer Reads, Insider Interviews, Big Picture/Big Question, and Say More – and the full PS archive.
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Moreover, President Emmanuel Macron has expanded France’s commitments to the nation’s poorest children. On first glance, this should be surprising, since he relied on middle- and upper-income voters to gain his electoral triumphs in 2017 and 2022. Nevertheless, he inaugurated a breakthrough initiative that is enabling some single parents to gain childcare for their two-year-olds – and is now proposing a more sweeping reform that will enable these children to gain government support. In taking these steps, Macron is calling upon his upper-income constituency to reflect on their own child-rearing anxieties, and recognize that they have a responsibility, as thoughtful democratic citizens, to assist the most vulnerable children in their struggle for a meaningful existence.
No less remarkably, President Joe Biden has been making the same call for civic responsibility in the US. When he entered the White House in 2021, his American Families Plan proposed spending $200 billion over four years for free universal preschool for all three- and four-year-olds. But the proposal was eliminated from the final bill, owing to Republican opposition to Biden’s “budget-busting” measures.
In a recent speech, however, Biden re-emphasized his commitment to childcare reform, promising to use a second term to push for increased investment in early education. The speech was aimed at a particular audience: the caregivers in attendance. But making universal preschool a centerpiece of his re-election campaign could help Biden beat Donald Trump, the Republican Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, in November’s election.
After all, vast numbers of voters are currently struggling to square the circle of postmodern marriage. Access to affordable childcare would make it easier for them to manage the inevitable tensions that arise from our current way of living without resorting to divorce. And even if a couple does break up, their children would benefit from stable relationships with trusted caregivers.
Biden’s campaign promise of universal preschool won’t be enough to convince committed Trump supporters to abandon their champion. But the upcoming election depends in large part on undecided voters in key swing states, and this cohort may be won over by Biden’s repeated emphasis on expanding childcare, and their support may be enough to provide him with a narrow victory in November.
Despite pollsters’ grim predictions, Biden may well prevent Trump’s return to the White House by promoting investment in the country’s youngest citizens. If re-elected, and assuming he maintains a majority in Congress, Biden could pass a transformative childcare initiative that would improve Americans’ life prospects for a long time to come.