At least some of the devaluation of intellect is that it's not considered "manly" by some to be an "egghead." And for the past 15 years, in particularly, the right has pushed a thuggish view of masculinity as being desirable because it's "tough" and "strong" and "independent." The culmination of this is this the current president. Being educated is painted as being soft and feminine somehow, and you know, we can't have men like that...

And the result is, even people with Master's degrees who know how to take directions but don't know how to think critically or creatively.