{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.cotton.senate.gov/news/press-releases/cotton-demands-answers-from-education-secretary-about-collaboration-with-teachers-union-to-intimidate-parents", "Cotton Demands Answers from Education Secretary About Collaboration with Teachers Union to Intimidate Parents", "2022-01-24", "2022", "2022-01", "Republican", "Senate", "AR", "Tom Cotton", "C001095", "www.cotton.senate.gov", "cotton", "https://www.cotton.senate.gov/news/press-releases", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContact: James Arnold or Mary Collins Atkinson (202) 224-2353\n\nJanuary 24, 2022\n\nCotton Demands Answers from Education Secretary About Collaboration with Teachers Union to Intimidate Parents\n\nWashington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) today sent a letter to Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona asking about his involvement in a letter that the National Education Association (NEA) sent to tech leaders requesting that they censor users allegedly spreading \u201cmisinformation\u201d about unpopular school board policies. The letter may be found here.\n\nIn part, Cotton wrote, \u201cThe NEA\u2019s letter is remarkably similar to a letter sent just nine days earlier by the National School Board Association (NSBA) to President Biden. In that letter, the NSBA smeared parents as potential \u201cdomestic terrorists\u201d while singling out mask polices and critical race theory as the causes of disturbances at local school board meetings. The implication of both letters is the same: individuals opposed to critical race theory and mask mandates in schools are potential domestic terrorists.\u201d\n\n\u201cRecent reporting indicates that you asked the NSBA to write its letter to President Biden. Similarities in the timing and content of the NEA letter raise the troubling possibility that you or your staff may have had a hand in that letter, as well,\u201d Cotton continued.\n\nText of the letter may be found here and below.\n\nThe Honorable Miguel Cardona\n\nSecretary of Education\n\nDepartment of Education Building\n\n400 Maryland Ave, SW\n\nWashington, D.C. 20202\n\nDear Secretary Cardona,\n\nI write regarding an October 8th letter that the National Education Association (NEA) sent to the leaders of Facebook (officially known as \u201cMeta\u201d), Twitter, and TikTok. This letter accused social-media platforms of spreading \u201cmisinformation\u201d about unpopular school board policies. Specifically, this letter singled out \u201cradicalized adults who falsely believe that graduate level courses about racism are being taught in K-12 public schools.\u201d This statement appears to be a thinly veiled reference to parents who are concerned about critical race theory, a radical ideology that claims America is a fundamentally racist country and attributes moral characteristics to people on the basis of race. The letter also decried a \u201csmall yet vocal group of extremists who are putting the safety of our children, educators, and families at risk over the notion that wearing a mask is in infringement on personal liberty.\u201d NEA accused groups concerned about curricula based on critical race theory and restrictive mask policies of spreading \u201cpropaganda\u201d and \u201clies\u201d on social media and requested that social-media companies \u201cstamp out\u201d such speech.\n\nThe NEA\u2019s letter is remarkably similar to a letter sent just nine days earlier by the National School Board Association (NSBA) to President Biden. In that letter, the NSBA smeared parents as potential \u201cdomestic terrorists\u201d while singling out mask polices and critical race theory as the causes of disturbances at local school board meetings. The implication of both letters is the same: individuals opposed to critical race theory and mask mandates in schools are potential domestic terrorists.\n\nRecent reporting indicates that you asked the NSBA to write its letter to President Biden. Similarities in the timing and content of the NEA letter raise the troubling possibility that you or your staff may have had a hand in that letter, as well.\n\nThe Biden administration already has a concerning record of collaboration with tech giants and teachers unions, including the NEA. Just last year, the NEA, along with other powerful teachers unions, inappropriately influenced the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as it developed guidance documents on school re-opening plans during the pandemic. Moreover, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki acknowledged that the Biden administration has identified \u201cproblematic\u201d posts for Facebook to censor because they allegedly contain \u201cmisinformation\u201d about coronavirus.\n\nBig Tech\u2019s potential censorship of concerned parents would be a chilling addition to the Biden administration\u2019s efforts to intimidate parents seeking a greater role in their children\u2019s education. Given these concerns, please respond to the following questions by January 31, 2022.\n\nDid you, your staff, or any employee of the Department of Education solicit or otherwise encourage the National Education Association\u2019s letter to the aforementioned social media companies?\n\nPlease provide all correspondence between your department and the National Education Association since January 21, 2021.\n\nHave you or your staff ever requested that social media companies, including Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, monitor, censor, demote, or otherwise limit the distribution of social media posts and groups related to school policies?\n\nPlease provide all correspondence between your department and the three aforementioned social media companies, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook since January 21, 2021.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:50:39Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.cotton.senate.gov/news/press-releases/cotton-demands-answers-from-education-secretary-about-collaboration-with-teachers-union-to-intimidate-parents"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6713619697839022, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}