Every Senator who voted to confirm Betsy DeVos to serve as U.S. Secretary of Education today should be ashamed. They put allegiance to an unpopular and dysfunctional president over the best interests of our children, our education system, our economy and our country – and above the wishes of their constituents, who spoke out in record numbers through phone calls, letters, faxes, and even in-person meetings to urge them to reject this nominee.

The vast majority of children in this country attend public school. They need a skilled, informed, dedicated champion for public education to serve as our country’s education secretary. But at her confirmation hearing, DeVos demonstrated virtually no knowledge about public education, virtually no commitment to strengthening our schools, and virtually no interest in tackling issues that will help all students succeed. She could not answer basic questions about education policy and declined to commit to protecting badly needed funds for our public schools. She refused to commit to enforcing laws and policies designed to prevent and punish sexual assault on college campuses, enforcing gun-free zones at schools, and supporting measures that would help our schools provide quality education to students with disabilities. 

She spent years trying to steer badly needed tax dollars away from traditional public schools, which alone should have been disqualifying. As an organization comprised of mothers and other caregivers, we recognize that providing all our children the best possible education is of the utmost importance. We will continue to fight to make sure that all of our children have access to the high quality education we know they deserve.

Those in the U.S. Senate who supported DeVos let the nation down today – and the children of America lost.