Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren raked in tens of thousands of dollars from teachers' unions before reversing her past support for student vouchers and education reform.
In 2004, Warren argued that vouchers "relieve parents" from relying on failing public schools. Her campaign's newly-released
education plan attacks charter schools and school choice. Warren's reversal comes after the Massachusetts senator took
more than $2.5 million in campaign cash from the education industry throughout her political career, including nearly $70,000 from the country's
most powerful teachers' unions, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Both the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
quickly praised Warren's plan, calling it "rooted in respect," "bold," and a "game-changer." The proposal,
described as a "teachers union dream," marks yet another example of the influence public sector organized labor has on the 2020 Democratic presidential field. On Tuesday, Warren flew to Chicago to participate in a teachers strike that has affected hundreds of thousands of students.
The Warren campaign did not return a request for comment.
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