Biden Education Secretary Miguel Cardona botches Reagan quote. His 'oops' moment matters.

There’s not much levity to be found in the news these days, so I’d like to thank U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona for making me laugh out loud.

A friend of mine recently passed along a clip of our country’s top education leader giving a keynote address this month at the Western Governors’ Association winter meeting.

Now, Cardona seems oblivious to the fact he was being funny, but that makes it even more hilarious (or alarming, depending on how you look at it).

This is what Cardona said – in reference to resources and technical assistance his department could provide governors – with a straight face and no hint of irony: “I think it was President Reagan said, ‘We’re from the government. We’re here to help.’ ”

While Ronald Reagan did in fact say some of those same words, his meaning was the complete opposite.

Here’s what Reagan actually said: “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.”

Context matters. And I have no doubt that President Joe Biden’s Education secretary has learned his lesson, after getting roasted by conservatives this week on social media once the video clip went viral.

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A window into liberal thinking

In addition to finding this mishap quite humorous, I think it also illustrates the fundamental differences between the right and left in this country.

To Cardona, there’s no question that "the government is here to help” is a positive refrain – one he even sounds proud of repeating.

Yet to Reagan, and limited-government conservatives like him, more government involvement in our lives is not to our benefit – in fact, it’s detrimental.

More regulations and red tape lead to less freedom and higher taxes.

The liberal view, however, is that the benefits of government involvement outweigh any costs. It’s a form of taxpayer-funded altruism.

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Biden and Cardona have exemplified this point of view in carrying out the administration’s fervent desire to cancel a bunch of student loans ahead of the next election. They have pursued this action, even after getting told to back off by the U.S. Supreme Court for their unconstitutional executive overreach.

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To them, offering this “relief” is the right and necessary thing to do. Some Democrats even say it’s “cruel” for Republicans to question the clear abuse of the separation of powers, not to mention whether creating a new de facto entitlement program is wise or fair.

Shouldn’t Cardona get the Betsy DeVos treatment?

Something else stood out to me in the wake of Cardona’s botching of Reagan's history. What if Betsy DeVos, the former Education secretary under President Donald Trump, had so badly misused a famous quote from a previous president?

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After seeing how DeVos was treated by the mainstream news media and the left for her tenure, I know the answer: She would have made headlines in most major publications. They would have jumped at the chance to feed the false narrative that DeVos was an incompetent moron.

Whether it was "Saturday Night Live" or The Washington Post, the DeVos watchdogs were quick to strike.

Right-leaning media jumped on Cardona’s faux pas, but the rest of the press has stayed pretty silent. And that silence is telling of an unfair standard. Cardona deserves as much scrutiny as DeVos had.

The Education secretary's unintentional slip, while amusing, is eye-opening into how this administration perceives its role in our lives. The American people should be aware of it.

Ingrid Jacques is a columnist at USA TODAY. Contact her at ijacques@usatoday.com or on X, formerly Twitter: @Ingrid_Jacques

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden vs. Reagan: Why the government really isn't here to help