Only The Best People

Its because conservatives have actively meddled in the educational system, and kept kids from learning and practicing Critical Thinking Skills. At the same time, they used the vast Conservative Propaganda Machine to teach people to rely on Faith-Based Thinking, where they believe whatever they are told, no matter how absurd or outlandish, as long as it comes from someone in authority, such as a radio/tv talk show host, a politician, a preacher, a cop, a boss, etc.

Thats why they went so hard after evangelicals. They have already proven that they will build their entire lives around the most bizarre mythology and fairy tales written by neolithic goatherders, so all they had to do was get them to accept their political fairy tales, too.

Critical Thinking Skills are the most important part of any person's education, and Conservatives have actively suppressed it. That's why the Department of Education has always been one of their worst enemies. The 'liberal indoctrination" they are always screaming about are Critical Thinking Skills.

Look around the world... It's not just the US, the US are just a big example of it

...the baby boomer generation were raised on television and consider it an authoritative source of information; fox news made them a captive asset...as for younger folks on the fascist train, it's likely sensationalist social media echo chambers, and unfortunately more and more countries are fostering the same pathology...

It's because those in power will always make sure the masses are blaming the "others" and that there will always be "others"to blame. They don't want people looking too closely and seeing that it is them who make life hard.