(Daily Signal)—Teachers unions such as the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers are using dues to push a political agenda instead of “addressing the failed education system,” the head of Moms for Liberty told the Daily Signal in an interview.
Tina Descovich, the group’s CEO, says her claim does not stem from her own personal opinion, but from years of tracking union resolutions, curricula, and meetings, as well national education data.
The Department of Education’s 2025 National Assessment of Educational Progress revealed that a record 32% of high school seniors cannot read proficiently, and almost half cannot do basic math. Fourth- and eighth-grade math and reading scores also fell, continuing a collapse that began before the COVID-19 school closures.
“The teachers unions are the reason public education is failing in America,” Descovich said, adding that they focus on “everything but education.”
Harmful Indoctrination
The ones who are getting hurt are America’s children, according to the education-reform leader.
“They’re trying to divide children from their families, and they are actively trying to turn them into radical activists at a young age before they can form their own political opinions,” Descovich stated.
For example, she noted that one resolution that was advanced and approved by a union “was to keep secrets from parents when it comes to gender ideologies.”
Other resolutions supported teachers who refuse to tell when children want to change their name or pronouns, which bathroom they want to use, which sexual orientation they claim, and other sensitive information parents need to know about their own kids.
Descovich also relayed watching the president of the California Teachers Association speak at a convention, wearing a shirt with a Marxist fist that read, “Solidarity is a Lesson Plan.”
“They vote on all types of things. For example, they voted on a resolution to abolish [Immigration and Customs Enforcement]. They also voted to designate May 1 as a day of civic action, similar to International Workers’ Day for the Communist Party. They voted to oppose the SAVE Act,” she said, explaining that such issues don’t address America’s failing education system.
Intimidation Tactics and Money
According to Descovich, unions take hundreds of millions of dollars out of hard-working teachers’ pockets, yet those same teachers “don’t even know that this is what they’re doing with their funding.”
Teachers unions are legally allowed to donate to political candidates across the country. And while individual teachers may be Democrats or Republicans, Descovich says “99% of their political donations go to Democrats.”
“They don’t agree with their hard-earned money going to support Democrat candidates that are diametrically opposed to what they believe in and what they value, but teachers feel forced to pay their dues to the unions,” she explained, adding that teachers are coerced or intimidated into joining a union and paying dues.
Desire for Federal Oversight
Descovich said the solution is federal oversight.
Rep. Mark Harris, a member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, introduced a bill in July to repeal the NEA’s congressional charter. The bill was co-sponsored by Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.
“Since the NEA is clearly not prioritizing students, parents or even teachers, it’s time to remove Congress’ seal of approval from this rogue organization,” Harris wrote in a press release at the time.
Descovich stated that while that effort is a step in the right direction, it faces a long road ahead.
“So, you know, that’s easy, that’s Step One. However, that legislation has yet to be voted on by the committee,” Descovich said.
She concluded that money talks in Washington, especially when it comes to unions.
“Democrats are never going to go against what the teachers unions want because they are funded by them,” she continued, saying the situation ends up being a “money laundering scheme for political corruption.”
