DEVOS ON CNN WON'T SAY DISTRICTS SHOULD FOLLOW CDC GUIDELINES IN REOPENING SCHOOLS; ON FOX SHE SAYS IF SCHOOLS DON'T REOPEN, THEY SHOULD LOSE FEDERAL FUNDS

Donald Trump Education Secretary Betsy DeVos appeared on the State of the Union Sunday talk show earlier. Here is a  response from the Democratic National Committee War Room that was sent to the ICEUFT email account:

Sunday Shows, DeVos Can’t Ensure Our Schools Reopen Safely

On the Sunday shows today, Secretary Betsy DeVos made it clear that the Trump administration has no plan to ensure our schools can reopen safely.

Betsy DeVos refused to give a straight answer on whether students, teachers, and parents will not get coronavirus when schools reopen.

BASH: “Yes or no: Can you assure students, teachers, parents that they will not get coronavirus because they’re going back to school?”

DEVOS: “Well, the key is that kids have to get back to school. And we know there are going to be hotspots.”

Betsy DeVos downplayed the risk of children spreading coronavirus and repeatedly dismissed CDC guidance on how to safely reopen schools.

BASH: “I’m asking you about your own federal government’s guidelines, the CDC guidelines. And what the CDC has said is if children meet in groups it could put everyone at risk.

DEVOS: “Well the CDC has also been very clear to say they never recommended schools close down in the first place.”

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins: “Asked twice, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos declines to say yes, schools should follow CDC guidance as they reopen. Instead she says every situation is going to look different and, of education leaders, ‘These are smart people who can figure things out.’”

Betsy DeVos made it clear that this administration has no plan for how to safely reopen our schools.

BASH: “Why do you not have guidance on what a school should do, just weeks before you want those schools to open, and what happens if there’s an outbreak?”

DEVOS: “There’s really good examples that have been utilized in the private sector and elsewhere.”

BASH: “Okay, but I’m not hearing a plan from the Department of Education. Do you have a plan?”

DEVOS: “Schools should do what’s right on the ground at that time for their students.”

Update

This is some of what the Secretary said on Fox News Sunday from Axios:

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos told "Fox News Sunday" that public schools that don't reopen in the fall should not get federal funds, and that the money should be redirected to families who can use it to find another option for their children.

Why it matters: The Trump administration is engaged in a full-court press to reopen schools this fall, despite warnings from some public health officials that the coronavirus outbreak is out of control in many states and that it will be difficult for many schools to reopen safely.

Grilled by Fox's Chris Wallace on what the administration is doing to make to make it safer or more feasible, DeVos repeatedly stressed that "kids cannot afford to not continue learning" and that she's not talking about places where the virus is "out of control."

"We're talking about the rule, not the exception. And where there are hot spots in the future and in the fall, of course that has to be dealt with differently," DeVos said.