06/13/2025 | News release | Distributed by Public on 06/13/2025 12:57
The budget reconciliation bill-President Donald Trump's so-called big, beautiful bill that threatens to harm working families in favor of giving tax cuts to the very wealthy-is still making its way through Congress, so it's not yet law. But even if the Senate manages to moderate some of its worst elements, there are still huge cuts in the "big, ugly bill," said AFT President Randi Weingarten at a virtual teach-in June 11.
For example, "We predict that there's going to be 14 to 15 million people who lose their basic healthcare," she said. Cuts to Medicaid are especially harmful, as AFT member and nurse Redetha Abrahams-Nichols describes here. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program would also take a big hit; the crucial role SNAP plays in the lives of AFT members and their families is outlined here.
And the bill could decimate education services, forever altering the role our schools and colleges play in equalizing opportunity and educating young professionals. Why? To give tax cuts to billionaires, said Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), who hosted the teach-in. "Trump and the Republicans' playbook steals from working people to give to the wealthy." That means poor, middle-class and working-class people "are taking it on the chin," said Weingarten.
Other participants agreed. They were Liz Becker, IRA campaign coordinator at the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada; David Green, Region 2B director for the United Auto Workers; Michael Linden, director of Families Over Billionaires; Dani Parent, co-executive director of the West Virginia Citizen Action Group; and Joe Radosevich, counselor at Center for American Progress.
Participants said much is at stake for education in particular. Trump is trying to shutter the Department of Education, and his administration is proposing billions of dollars in cuts to K-12 schools and higher education. At a time when we need to invest in early education; teacher pipelines; school facilities; career and technical education; cutting-edge literacy, math and STEM; community schools; and broader access to college, the Republicans' budget reconciliation bill invests in none of these.
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Here is what the bill would do if it were passed in its current form:
The bill in its current iteration also includes more than $300 billion in cuts to higher education, so that going to college would be less affordable and paying back student loans would be more expensive. The bill would:
The panel of speakers expressed outrage over the changes anticipated under the reconciliation bill and vowed to continue to advocate for a better path forward. Weingarten urged participants to call and email their elected representatives and to participate in nonviolent street protests.
"This is a moment when our democracy is really at risk and at stake," said Weingarten. "Whether we're fighting the reconciliation bill or whether we're fighting to have a democracy, that is what we have to do as we the people."
[Virginia Myers]