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Republican leaders are pushing back hard against union boss Randi Weingarten’s attempts to rewrite the history of COVID-era school closures. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin slammed her claims, pointing out how her actions hurt kids while teachers’ unions held schools hostage. President Trump’s new order to dismantle the Education Department has added fuel to the fire, exposing the left’s obsession with bureaucratic control over parents’ rights.
Weingarten, head of the American Federation of Teachers, insists her union fought to reopen schools. But emails and testimony reveal she pressured the CDC to add strict rules that kept classrooms shut. Critics argue this wasn’t about safety—it was about power. Virginia suffered the worst learning loss in the nation because unions like hers blocked in-person learning long after science said it was safe.
Governor Youngkin called out the hypocrisy, saying, “A 12-inch screen is not a quality education.” He blasted Weingarten for opposing Trump’s plan to eliminate the bloated Education Department, which conservatives say funnels money to union agendas instead of students. Trump’s move would return control to states and parents, cutting the red tape that let unions keep schools closed.
Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos accused Weingarten of “revisionist history,” noting teachers’ unions demanded exorbitant COVID safety measures that many schools couldn’t afford. This created endless delays, leaving kids stuck at home. Test scores plummeted, and mental health crises spiked—proof that remote learning failed our children.
Even Democrat Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot admitted the disconnect between Weingarten’s national talking points and local reality. Unions dug in their heels, fighting reopenings while parents begged for normalcy. The result? A generation of students fell behind, with low-income and minority kids hit hardest.
Conservatives highlight how union-free private schools reopened quickly without issues, while public schools caved to fearmongering. Weingarten’s lobbying led the CDC to parrot union demands, like pointless social distancing rules and closure “triggers.” These unscientific policies ignored data showing schools weren’t COVID super-spreaders.
Now, Trump’s push to dismantle the Education Department aims to break the unions’ stranglehold. Youngkin praised the move, saying it’s time to “cut the bureaucracy” and fund students instead of systems. School choice is booming as parents flee failing policies, with red states expanding options to bypass union-controlled districts.
The fallout from school closures has become a rallying cry for conservatives. They argue Weingarten’s actions prove unions care more about politics than kids. As Youngkin put it, “They cannot spin their way out of this.” The 2024 election will be a referendum on restoring parental rights and ending union overreach in education.
