PRESS RELEASE Contact: press@congressionalintegrity.org
For Immediate Release
Date: April 26, 2023
Washington, D.C. – Today, MAGA House Republicans and the MAGA Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic hosted a political stunt hearing, this time attacking the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), union leaders and public education all while advancing wild conspiracy theories. The MAGA Republicans on the committee spent the hearing ranting about Critical Race Theory, complaining about their personal Twitter bans, spreading conspiracies about the COVID-19 pandemic, and accusing the AFT of the “destruction of our children.” MAGA Republicans continue to show they don’t care about solving the actual issues that face our country, but they would rather play political games to further their own radical agenda. In response, Congressional Integrity Project executive director, Kyle Herrig issued the following statement:
“As Oversight Committee Ranking Member Raskin made clear, these hearings are a sham. This hearing was nothing more than another political stunt intended to further MAGA Republicans’ radical agenda rather than deal with issues that actually matter to students and parents, like protecting students and teachers from gun violence in their schools or taking measures to prevent future public health emergencies. AFT President Randi Weingarten has become the favorite punching bag for MAGA Republicans who have assailed teachers and public education for decades but she demonstrated today that the GOP’s concern for children and schools is as phony as a three dollar bill. Republicans will do anything they can to politicize our children’s education and push their extreme MAGA agenda onto the American people. Unfortunately for them, these political stunts continue to backfire.”
###
House Republicans used this hearing as yet another political stunt to push their conspiratorial MAGA agenda.
- Far-right Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) denounced the CDC for consulting with educators and parents when considering pandemic policies, while the House Judiciary GOP tweeted: “Americans are tired of the ‘experts.’”
- Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) spread conspiracies about transgender students and hurled wild accusations at AFT President Randi Weingarden, calling her “not a biological mother and really not a teacher either,” and accusing her of so-called “digital blackface.” Committee Democrats even asked to strike her comments from the record.
- Former presidential physician Ronny Jackson (R-TX) used his time to spread lies about the COVID-19 response, calling the AFT “corrupt” and accusing the organization of supposedly playing a role in the “destruction of our children.”
- Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) used the hearing to rant about Critical Race Theory, while Rep. Debbie Lesko (R-AZ) complained that teachers were able to go to Walmart while schools were closed.
- Oversight Chair James Comer (R-TN) berated the committee’s own witness over speaking time.