Mastriano Bill Seeks To Ban Sexual Content, 'Pole Dancing' In Schools

HARRISBURG, PA — Building on the key selling messages of his gubernatorial campaign, Republican State Sen. Doug Mastriano plans to introduce new legislation that aims to restrict an array of content from schools, including sexual subjects, critical race theory, and gender-identity.

The exact text of the "Back to Basics in Education" bill has not yet been published, but Mastriano says it will prevent these subjects from being "taught or discussed" in schools. The announcement of the pending legislation comes just days after a public appearance in which he reportedly said he would outlaw "pole dancing" in classrooms as well.

"Schools should be a place for engaging in academic discussions and creating citizens capable of self-governance," Mastriano wrote in a co-sponsorship memorandum. "They are not the place to engage in politically divisive concepts that impart personal beliefs on impressionable young minds."

During a campaign appearance over the weekend, Mastriano vowed "on day one, the sexualization of our kids, pole dancing, and all this other crap that's going on will be forbidden in our schools," Business Insider reported.

It's nothing new, but like much of the rhetoric coming from both Mastriano and the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz, it's intensified and radicalized as election day draws nearer.

Mastriano now trails Attorney General Josh Shapiro by 10.4 points, according to the latest aggregate of polls from RealClearPolitics.

RELATED: Bill Would Ban 'Highly Sexual' Material From PA School Libraries

Mastriano's newly proposed bill falls in line with much of his campaign platform, which has been aggressively populist and relied on Trump-brand bombasity to drum up near-cult level support. It's similar to a slew of bills introduced recently which address where the power of censorship should lie and what role which levels of govermnents should play in adjudicating related disagreements. In April, a bill seeking to restrict "sexual" content in schools, derided as draconian by Democrats, was introduced. In July, a coalition of 21 GOP lawmakers called for the resignation of the Pennsylvania Secretary of Education over sexual orientation resources and gender identity language on the state website.

Thumping on those topics brought Mastriano a landslide victory over more establishment candidates in the primary, but has not, thus far, earned him much purchase in the polls with the general population.

But as both the 2016 and 2020 elections showed, polls can be quite inaccurate — especially when it comes to estimating support for the MAGA branch of the Republican Party in Pennsylvania.