American Legislative Exchange Council hosts Education Secretary: ALEC in The Center Square
Secretary McMahon discusses school choice, union backlash, and Trump’s plan to eliminate the Department of Education.
At ALEC’s 52nd Annual Meeting, The Center Square’s Esther Wickham spotlighted a fireside chat between Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and ALEC CEO Lisa B. Nelson on the future of education reform.
The American Legislative Exchange Council hosted its annual meeting beginning Wednesday, with Secretary of Education Linda McMahon as a guest speaker to discuss recent education initiatives.
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McMahon said the administration has so far allocated around $500 million for school choice, an initiative that gives parents the ability to decide what kind of education their children receive: public schools, charter schools, homeschooling, etc.
The Secretary of Education explained President Donald Trump wants all children to have access to quality education by ultimately giving it to the states, where education is closest to the child. She said states should be the ones enacting regulations.
The discussion came on the heels of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that cleared the way for President Trump to proceed with dismantling the U.S. Department of Education and implementing sweeping layoffs. McMahon weighed in, stating:
“I would hope our legacy is that we left making things better and stronger,” she continued “I want to leave best practices for the states … I think that is one of the most important things that we can do as we wind down the bureaucracy in Washington. We’re not winding down education, we are lifting education. But we have to cut out the bureaucracy and the red tape and all the costs that go along with that.”
Nelson added that the department is simply “repurposing all the good parts.”
McMahon explained, though, that not everyone has been happy with these decisions. Teachers’ unions have especially pushed back on these initiatives, claiming the Trump administration hates education. She said the president of the National Education Association, Rebecca Pringle, went on a rant recently accusing Trump of fascism. McMahon called Pringle out for simply not understanding fascism.