For years, those of us on the right have been warning that America’s largest teachers’ unions—the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT)—aren’t really about teaching kids math, reading, and science. They are political machines dressed up as professional associations. And now, thanks to a new watchdog report, we have the proof in black and white.
The report shows that since 2022, the NEA and AFT have funneled nearly $50 million into left-wing political causes. Let me repeat that: not classrooms, not textbooks, not improving literacy—but nearly $50 million into Democratic super PACs, progressive think tanks, and radical activist groups.
The unions sent close to $1.5 million to left-wing powerhouses like the Tides Network, New Venture Fund, the Sixteen-Thirty Fund, and Future Forward—the Super PAC that bankrolled Kamala Harris’ 2024 presidential run. They also handed over money to the Democratic Governors Association and the House and Senate Majority PACs, which exist solely to elect Democrats. And let’s not forget the nearly $1 million given to the Center for American Progress, the beating heart of progressive policy in Washington.
Meanwhile, how much of the NEA’s budget actually goes to representing teachers and improving education? Less than 10%. By contrast, a staggering 38% is spent on politics—on donations, lobbying, and contributions to left-leaning groups. In other words, these unions spend nearly four times as much advancing leftist causes as they do helping their members.
This isn’t just bad stewardship—it’s a betrayal. Teachers join unions thinking their dues will help them bargain for fair pay, better classrooms, and resources for their students. Instead, their hard-earned money is being siphoned off into the pockets of Democratic politicians and activist groups. It’s a political slush fund masquerading as an education organization.
And here’s where it hits home in Montgomery County, Maryland. These are the very same unions that pour money into our local school board elections, ensuring that our so-called “nonpartisan” Board of Education is nothing more than an arm of the Democratic Party. With their willing accomplices on the County Council, these unions are now targeting one of the crown jewels of Montgomery County Public Schools: the Blair Magnet program.
For forty years, Blair Magnet has been a nationally recognized STEM program, a pipeline for some of the brightest young minds in the country. It’s a merit-based program that has produced scientists, engineers, doctors, and innovators. But because the student body doesn’t look the way the left wants it to—because too many of those excelling are Asian-American students—the Board of Education wants to shut it down.
Think about the absurdity: in the middle of an academic crisis, when reading and math scores are plummeting, when the county’s regular classrooms are struggling, the political left is trying to dismantle one of the most successful educational programs in the nation. Why? Because it’s based on merit, not social engineering. Because success doesn’t fit their equity agenda.
This is the logical outcome of unions and politicians obsessed with identity politics instead of excellence. When you spend tens of millions on radical causes, when you prioritize ideology over education, you end up with policies that punish success. And Montgomery County is just the latest example.
The unions tell us they’re “for the children.” Really? Show me how funneling money to Kamala Harris’ Super PAC helps a child in Silver Spring learn algebra. Show me how bankrolling the Democratic Governors Association helps a seventh grader in Germantown learn to read. You can’t. Because it doesn’t.
What it does do is ensure that local politicians are beholden to union dollars and progressive dogma. It ensures that instead of protecting and expanding proven programs like Blair Magnet, our elected officials are working overtime to dismantle them in the name of “equity.”
For years, conservatives have sounded the alarm: the NEA and AFT are not neutral stakeholders in education. They are partisan actors using schools as pawns in their political game. This latest report proves it beyond doubt.
And here in Montgomery County, we are seeing the cost. If the unions and their allies succeed in shutting down Blair Magnet, it won’t just be Asian-American kids who lose out—it will be every student who deserves the chance to succeed based on merit and hard work.
It’s time parents, teachers, and taxpayers stand up and say enough. Enough of the unions funding leftist politicians while ignoring real education. Enough of the County Council and Board of Education tearing down successful programs in the name of ideology. And enough of sacrificing excellence on the altar of politics.
Because our children deserve better. And we, the people footing the bill, should demand it.
Endnotes
- Fox News Digital, “Nation’s 2 largest teachers unions funneled nearly $50M to left-wing groups, watchdog report says,” August 2025.
- Washington Examiner, “Union watchdog: Teachers unions funding politics over students,” August 2025; Fox News Digital, ibid.
- Aaron Withe, quoted in Fox News Digital, ibid.
Carol Hughes is a contributor for Direct Line News. She can be reached at Carol.Hughes@mcgopclub.com
Direct Line News is a Maryland-based free-access publication committed to the Republican reform tradition.
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