5 minPolitics
Senate Republican urges review of teachers union charter over political agenda
Sen. Bill Cassidy is urging Congress to scrutinize the National Education Association's century-old federal charter, citing the union's left-wing partnerships, political spending, and classroom materials.
The Republican chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions is calling on Congress to reconsider the federal charter of the National Education Association, the nation's largest teachers union, over what he describes as a politically charged agenda that has drifted from its original educational mission.
Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana released a report spotlighting the NEA's collaborations with left-wing educational nonprofits, its spending of membership dues on political causes, and its promotion of classroom materials that critics say push ideology over academics. The union, which represents roughly three million educators, was chartered by Congress in 1906 with the stated mission to "elevate the character and advance the interests of the profession of teaching; and to promote the cause of education in the United States."
"Children are struggling to read and to do basic math. Instead of helping students succeed, teachers' unions are injecting a dangerous, anti-American agenda into our classrooms," Cassidy said. "Parents deserve to send their children to school without worrying that they will be indoctrinated with DEI and taught that Americans have 'misplaced faith' in our institutions."
The report, obtained exclusively by Fox News Digital, focuses heavily on the NEA's extensive partnership with the Zinn Education Project and Rethinking Schools, two interlinked nonprofits that produce curricular materials for K-12 classrooms. According to the committee's findings, those groups have published lessons that justify the actions of the Black Panther Party, the left-wing militant organization active during the Cold War, and praise members involved in acts of political violence.
"The Marxist and communist ideologies espoused by the Black Panther Party are inconsistent and incompatible with the foundation of the United States Constitution," the report states. "The Black Panthers advocated for the use of armed force against police and were involved in the murders of civil servants and members of their own party."
The report also cites a Rethinking Schools lesson plan in which students role-play as "queer liberation" activists fighting the "Religious Right," as well as a separate plan titled "Expanding Intersectional Queer History in the Elementary Grades" that instructs teachers on incorporating LGBTQ material into lessons for young students. The NEA has given both nonprofits prominent space at conferences, collaborated on curriculum development, and helped distribute their lesson plans to educators nationwide.
Beyond curriculum, the committee points to the union's involvement in political protest movements. The NEA promoted and participated in the 2026 May Day protests critical of President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers. In a planning webinar hosted by the union, educators were advised to "bring activism into the classroom," with materials targeting children as young as three. Students in Chicago were reportedly encouraged by teachers to skip class for the demonstrations, even as Chicago Public Schools report subpar reading and math competency scores.
On the financial side, the report cites data showing that since 2015 the NEA has contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to advocacy organizations and political action committees, the vast majority left-of-center. Recipients include the Sixteen Thirty Fund and the Tides Foundation, two of the largest Democratic-aligned dark money operations in the country, as well as millions directed to the union's own PAC, which almost exclusively supports Democratic candidates. In some cases, the report notes, organizations funded by the NEA later provided jobs to members of the union's leadership team.
"The central issue is not whether every such expenditure is impermissible," the committee report reads. "Rather, it is whether members receive sufficient transparency about how their dues are used, whether union leadership has adopted adequate safeguards against conflicts of interest and whether these expenditures advance the purposes for which members joined the union in the first place."
Revoking the NEA's charter would primarily be a reputational blow, as the union could continue operating without it. Cassidy and other Republicans argue the review is necessary to determine whether the organization still serves the educational purpose Congress intended more than a century ago.
