I think that math-phobia is at the root of most objections to including fundamentals such as algebra in a core curriculum. I also think that most
math-phobia is a direct result of really, really bad math teachers who to more to teach their students to hate and fear math than they do to help them learn and master the concepts.
I don't use arithmetic that often in my work, but I use mathematics principles regularly, like every day. Learning to do algebraic proofs opened my eyes to how to solve complex problems and the concepts learned by doing them form the basis of how I compose legal arguments in matters of first impression.
Algebra particularly is a particularly critical subject.