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Democratic Presidential Contenders Rush to Praise Striking L.A. Teachers

By Alyson Klein — January 16, 2019 2 min read
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Democratic presidential candidates—and potential contenders—are rushing to embrace the Unified Teachers of Los Angles in their fight for more resources for their classrooms. (Great breakdown on the strike and the reasons for here, from Maddy Will).

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who announced earlier this month that she’s forming a presidential exploratory committee, was among the first to get in on the action:

Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., who is expected to announce her candidacy soon, weighed in, too.

So did Sen. Bernie Sanders, an Independent from Vermont, who sought the Democratic nomination in 2016 and is expected to jump into the race again.

And so did Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, who is often mentioned as a potential presidential candidate.

Interestingly, none of the contenders appear to share former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s view that the teachers’ union should instead work with district leadership to get California’s lawmakers to provide more money for education. Duncan is worried about the impact of the strike on vulnerable students. “It’s just like a family, when adults fight, it’s kids that lose,” he wrote in an op-ed for The Hill.

Want to know more about the education records of possible 2020 White House contenders? Check out this blog post.

Photo: Jae C. Hong for the Associated Press

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