WASHINGTON – AFSCME President Lee Saunders released the following statement in opposition to Linda McMahon’s confirmation to lead the U.S. Department of Education:
“Billionaires led by Elon Musk are hellbent on dismantling the U.S. Department of Education, and wrestling mogul Linda McMahon is ready and willing to do their bidding. She has no reservations about hollowing out the agency responsible for ensuring equal educational opportunities for the nation’s 50 million public school students or protecting the civil rights of students with disabilities, English learners, and students from low-income and rural communities. Having spent her entire career padding the profits of corporate shareholders, it’s no surprise she supports vouchers that siphon funding away from public schools that serve 90 percent of our communities’ schoolchildren.
“Children and public school workers will suffer the cost of understaffed schools, larger classroom sizes, and fewer extracurricular opportunities – all to give tax cuts to the wealthy. But AFSCME members won’t stand for it. They are among the millions of workers across this nation who have dedicated their careers to educating and supporting America’s children and youth. They don’t do it to get rich – they do it because they believe in the next generation, and we will be standing together against any attack on students.”