The Three Rs: Clinton and Weingarten Return to Republicans, Rage, and Recrimination
By: Jonathan Turley | September 19, 2025
Many people are calling out former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for a posting supporting American Federation of Teachers (AFT) chief Randi Weingarten’s new book in which she paints her political opponents as “fascists.” The timing was flagged as, at best, tone deaf in the wake of the assassination of Charlie Kirk by a shooter who wrote fascist references on his bullets and was clearly radicalized by such rage rhetoric. For me, the timing was most notable in how Weingarten and Clinton are again pushing their extreme rhetoric as a new report emerged showing the utter failure of our schools to actually educate our children. Weingarten and Clinton cannot be bothered by the long-standing declines in education. They are returning to the three Rs: Republicans, Rage, and Recrimination.
Weingarten is “credited” with turning the teacher’s union into an extension of the Democratic Party, often appearing at political rallies with her signature high-volume screeds:
Clinton pushed the use of education to paint opponents as fascists: “Congratulations to my friend [Weingarten] on ‘Why Fascists Fear Teachers.’ From banning books to controlling curriculum, authoritarians go after public education because it’s a cornerstone of democracy.”
Schools have become the cornerstone of a political strategy as opposed to actual education. As Weingarten and Clinton were pushing the fascism attacks, a new study showed just how badly teacher’s unions and administrators have failed our students.
While Weingarten and other unions have poured millions into democratic and liberal campaigns, they have done little to improve education for millions of students.
High school students, especially 12th graders, hit record lows this year, according to a new report from the National Assessment of Education Progress. The new report, known as the Nation’s Report Card, shows almost half of high school seniors are now testing below basic levels in math and reading, and approximately 35% are at or above a proficient reading level, while 32% of them had a below “basic” reading proficiency. In math, only about 22% of 12th graders are performing at or above proficiency standards.
A review of eighth graders and their science ability found 31% of them were performing at proficient or above proficient standards.
However, it is time to again attack your opponents as fascists in the name of education.
Teachers and school boards are killing the institution of public education by treating children and parents more like captives than consumers. They are force-feeding social and political priorities, including passes for engaging in approved protests.
Faced with abysmal scores, particularly for minority students, school boards and union officials have called for lowering or suspending proficiency standards or declared meritocracy to be a form of “white supremacy.” Gifted and talented programs are being eliminated in the name of “equity.”
At the same time, we have previously discussed how schools have been dropping the use of standardized tests to achieve diversity goals in admissions. Cal State dropped standardized testing “to level the playing field” for minority students.
The result is that colleges and universities are dealing with students who lack proficiency in basic subjects. This year, Harvard University was forced to introduce remedial, high-school-level math courses for its students due to falling scholastic standards.
The problem with a new diatribe about fascists is that many of your students may have little understanding of that term. Social studies proficiency has also been failing for years.
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