In his State of the Union address, President Biden called for universal access to pre-school, community college, and raising educator salaries.
He also said what the record clearly shows: Some Republicans are threatening to hold raising the debt ceiling hostage to cutting Social Security and Medicare. One member of Congress shouted, “Liar!” Others denied GOP proposals to sunset the programs every five years, raise the eligibility age, impose a means test, or cut benefits in other ways.
But President Biden spoke the truth. And, in the event of a default, the Social Security and Medicare trust funds would run short. If your checking account contained $100 and you owed $200, you’d have to choose among competing priorities. So would the U.S. Treasury—for example, between paying bondholders and Social Security beneficiaries.
Members of NEA’s Board of Directors met with senators, representatives, and their staffs on Capitol Hill. They urged lawmakers to raise the debt ceiling with no strings attached, pushed for police reform, and discussed the need to hike funding for community schools.
NEA President Becky Pringle participated in a rally to support the American Teacher Act, introduced by Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL). The bill would incentivize states to raise the minimum salary for teachers to $60,000 a year.
On Feb. 13, from 7:15 to 8:45 p.m. Eastern time, President Pringle will join Sen. Bernie Sanders, AFT President Randi Weingarten, and educators for a panel discussion and Q&A on raising salaries—an important element of solving the educator shortage and elevating the profession. The event will be livestreamed—Click to sign up for a reminder.
In solidarity,
Marc Egan
Government Relations Director
National Education Association
CHEER: Sens. Patty Murray (D-WA) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Katherine Clark (D-MA), Jimmy Gomez D-CA), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), Lois Frankel (D-FL), and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) rallied on Capitol Hill to underscore the need for universal pre-K and affordable child care.
CHEER: Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) reintroduced the Child Care for Every Community Act, which would will ensure that every family in every community has access to high quality, affordable child care and early learning opportunities by establishing a network of federally-supported, locally-administered child care options.
