A long-serving member of the National Education Association (NEA) and the California Teachers Association (CTA) told Fox News Digital that major teachers unions have abandoned instructional quality to focus almost exclusively on accumulating political power.
“It’s all about power,” said Michael Greer, a special education teacher who spent 26 years as a CTA and NEA member. “In California, the California Teachers Association is the most powerful lobbying group in the state, which also transfers into the national union.”
Greer — a retired educator with two decades of classroom experience who previously served as a local CTA chapter president and as a member of the Del Norte County Unified School District Board of Trustees — said the unions’ core priorities have fundamentally shifted since he entered public education.
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“When I first became a union president, it was about the teachers. We were focused on helping educators become better at what they do — helping them teach reading, math, and science,” Greer explained, noting that union-sponsored conferences used to feature practical instructional workshops and classroom training. “We took those programs back and taught our colleagues how to implement them. That has changed completely.”
Greer’s remarks follow independent analyses revealing that the nation’s two largest teachers unions — the NEA and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) — have directed hundreds of millions of dollars toward political activism, lobbying, and progressive advocacy groups over the last decade.
According to an investigation by the North American Values Institute (NAVI), an education watchdog tracking ideological activism, the NEA spent at least $547 million on political activity and advocacy between fiscal years 2016 and 2025. That total includes $458.9 million officially designated as political and lobbying expenditures, along with $88.2 million in direct contributions to progressive organizations. During the same period, the AFT reported $383.2 million in political activity and lobbying, NAVI found.
A separate report from Parents Defending Education found that national teachers unions have funneled over $660 million to left-wing political groups and causes since 2015. When state and local affiliates are included, total union political spending tops $1 billion.
According to the Parents Defending Education report, those contributions went to major Democratic-aligned political action committees — including the Senate Majority PAC and House Majority PAC — as well as progressive groups like the State Engagement Fund (over $60 million) and the For Our Future Action Fund (over $40 million).
Greer argued that this political spending has altered what unions expect from their members.
“What it has changed to is teaching teachers how to become union members, how to go on strike, and how to gain social justice power,” Greer told Fox News Digital. “We got away from teaching teachers how to teach and moved toward teaching them how to change the social system.”
The union emphasis on political activism comes amid persistent declines in student academic achievement. Federal education officials recently noted that national assessment data shows only about three in 10 students are proficient in math and reading, despite more than $3 trillion in federal taxpayer funding spent since the U.S. Department of Education was created in 1979.
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Greer, who also serves as chair of the Del Norte County Republican Party, acknowledged that the CTA maintains relationships across party lines at the state level — including funding travel for teachers of both major political parties to attend state political conventions.
“The CTA actually funds teachers to attend both the state Republican and Democratic conventions,” Greer said. “They will cover up to $800 for hotel and transportation, so teachers can participate.”
However, Greer said his vocal opposition to the union’s shift from classroom instruction to political activism has made him a rare ideological outlier within the organization.
“That’s why I’m known as one of the ‘bad boys’ in California education,” Greer said. “I’ve spoken out because they aren’t helping teachers on the ground floor where instruction actually happens — they are helping themselves gain the power to alter laws and regulations.”
“I’ve seen it as a school board member, and I’ve seen it as an NEA-CTA delegate at national conferences,” Greer added. “They are no longer focused on children and what they are learning. It’s about what teachers can do for political power, and that’s where my problem lies as I watch my union dues being spent.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the National Education Association and the California Teachers Association for comment but did not immediately receive a response.