Education Secretary Linda McMahon is joining Rep. Burgess Owens (R-UT) in Miami to launch a national tour promoting school choice.
The “Our Children First” tour is set to begin on Friday with Owens and McMahon giving an on-air interview with The David Webb Show centered on why they believe the Educational Choice for Children Act will be beneficial for students across the country.
Both McMahon and President Donald Trump are strong proponents of school choice.
“My vision is aligned with the President’s: to send education back to the states and empower all parents to choose an excellent education for their children,” McMahon said in a statement in March. “As a mother and grandmother, I know there is nobody more qualified than a parent to make educational decisions for their children.”
The ECCA would create $10 billion in tax credits to fund K-12 scholarships, which parents can use to decide where to send their children to receive education.
“Every child in America deserves the freedom to pursue their dreams through an education that fits their needs—not one assigned by their ZIP code,” Owens said in a statement. “’Our Children First’ is about restoring hope, empowering families, and investing in the next generation of leaders. Secretary McMahon’s tireless commitment to America’s children is an inspiration. I’m grateful she will be joining us for the launch of this important tour to ensure that parents—not bureaucracies—have the final say in their children’s future.”
Following the joint interview, Owens and McMahon will visit SLAM Miami, one of the nation’s leading charter schools, for a tour and live broadcast featuring interviews conducted by students at the school.
In a previous interview with the Washington Examiner, Owens shared how he’s trying to influence Republican colleagues to include the ECCA in budget reconciliation.
“The other side believes that there should be a centralized process in which all the power should be in D.C., and bureaucrats should decide what has actually been happening in our districts,” Owens told the Washington Examiner. “That’s why reconciliation would be a very good way of going at it because we can do it with a majority in the House and a majority in the Senate, and President Trump will definitely sign off.”
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While critics of school choice voucher programs have accused it of draining money from low-income schools, the scholarship money under the ECCA would come from funds created by tax credits.
The Washington Examiner reached out to Owens and the Department of Education for comment.
