AAUP and AFT Respond to Trump's 'Compact 2.0'

In a direct response to Education Secretary Linda McMahon's "A National Call to Action to University Presidents and Governing Boards," AAUP President Todd Wolfson and AFT President Randi Weingarten issued a formal response demanding that the Trump administration immediately cease weaponizing taxpayer funds and civil rights enforcement to politically coerce colleges and universities to adopt their authoritarian agenda.

The letter, titled "A National Call to Action to the Secretary of Education," demands an end to arbitrary grant cancellations and funding threats; explicit protections for academic freedom and freedom of speech for students, staff, and faculty; a rejection of government mandated ideological censorship; guardrails for artificial intelligence; and protection for all students and scholars regardless of whether their research and opinions align with the current presidential administration.

The AAUP and AFT have given Secretary McMahon a thirty-day deadline to provide written assurance that no college or university will face federal retaliation or receive favorable treatment based on how they respond to McMahon's "Compact 2.0" letter.

The full "National Call to Action to the Secretary of Education" can be found here.