When did caring for America’s most vulnerable kids become political?

Chabeli Carrazana

Economy and Child Care Reporter

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For 60 years, Head Start has provided child care for the most vulnerable children in the United States with little controversy.

It was established by a Democratic president, Lyndon B. Johnson, in 1965, and supported by a slew of Republicans since, including Richard Nixon, who called it “valuable” ; Ronald Reagan, who established Head Start Awareness Month in the 1980s ; and George H. W. Bush, who increased its funding . Legislators from both parties have supported Head Start, which operates in all 50 states, and is the only child care option available in some rural parts of the country.

This year, though, politics came to the door of Head Start. Caught in the political cross