Teachers’ Union Chief Randi Weingarten inadvertently made the best case for defunding the teachers’ union in an unhinged social media video. The far-left union leader was making a case for why the education system should not be a slush fund for the wealthy in opposition to Trump’s Our Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB), which she described as “very ugly.” Fortunately, she did not have the data on where most federal education funding is spent.
“We elect leaders to help working families thrive,” the American Federation of Teachers president said. “Our members do that every day.”
“But this Congress and this President have tried to pass a big, yes, it’s big, but very ugly bill that attacks our public schools and our health care.”
“Public education funding shouldn’t be used as a piggy bank for the wealthy. It’s wrong.”
“Our families deserve leaders who work for us, not against us.”
Ironically, teachers’ unions spent more on Democratic causes than on their own members, according to a 2020-2021 National Education Association, for which data is readily available.
According to Americans for Fair Treatment, teachers’ unions spent 17.6% of the NEA funding on political causes compared to just 8.6% on representing teachers.
“The NEA spent a total of $374 million during the 2020-2021 fiscal year. A meager 9% of the union’s spending was on ‘representational activities,’ or money that is spent directly to support its members,” AFFT CEO David Osborne said in a statement. “In contrast, 18% went to political activities, while another 32% went to ‘contributions, gifts, and grants,’ spending that is also largely political in nature. Those numbers show where their priorities lie.”
“The National Education Association’s (NEA) political and charitable spending in 2020-2021 makes the NEA look more like a political organization than a membership organization,” the report added.
The left-wing super PAC Future Forward USA Action received $1 million from the NEA, whose largest expense was “contributions, gifts and grants,” from which this expenditure was included.
Teachers’ Union Chief Weingarten literally had a position at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) from which she resigned in early June 2025, while her assistant still retains hers.
Additionally, most schools spent overwhelmingly on highly-paid administrative staff rather than on students and teachers, whose salaries remained stagnant for decades.
“While teacher pay has stagnated over the past two decades, the percentage of school budgets going to administrators has skyrocketed,” said the Campaign for Common Good founder, Philip K. Howard. “Half the states now have more noninstructional personnel than teachers.”
According to the Digest of Education Statistics, schools spent 95% of their budget on administrative costs, while a mere 5% went to students. Similarly, teachers who form the backbone of the education system received a mere 10%.
Undoubtedly, defunding the unions and the Department of Education would overwhelmingly affect bureaucrats and their political allies, as they already receive the lion’s share of the funding, rather than students and teachers, who only receive a drop from the ocean.
In contrast, having a leaner and more focused budget would ultimately benefit instructors and their learners than politicians, administrators, and union leaders.
Government employee unions should be banned. When I was a public school teacher, we went on strike, which meant I was striking against American taxpayers. The strike cost me nothing, because by law, students had to be in school a certain number of days, so I knew I would eventually be paid. When private unions go on strike it can be a real hardship financially for workers. In addition, government unions funnel dues to Democrats and their agenda. For a Conservative like me, paying hefty dues each month, it was an aggravating situation. The only teacher I knew who tried to buck our local union ended up losing her job over something petty and ridiculous. The admin and the union worked together to get her fired. I was there and I witnessed it.
Govt employees should not be allowed a union period. It creates conflict of interest and imo corruption.
Unions period should be banned.
This cronish gash is a prime exhibit of why government – at every level – must be removed from education. Over 30 years ago I saw David Barton give a presentation that included the New England Primer, which contained lessons and testable material for ELEMENTARY level children. Even in the 1990s, the vast majority of adults, MAL-educated in the government schools, could not pass a test based on this foundational text book. It is that much worse 30 years later. Even FDR was against the unionization of government employees. These outfits need to be declared unlawful and immediately defunded.