NEA president slams Trump's idea to reopen schools

U.S. National Education Association President Lily Eskelsen García on Tuesday slammed President Donald Trump's suggestion that schools should reopen, calling it "callous."

"That is so callous of him, so callous. When we do it wrong, people die. Little people can get sick. You have asthma. You've got bad allergies. And you're six years old, you could die if we do this wrong," she said speaking to the Associated Press.

Trump on Tuesday launched an all-out effort to reopen schools this fall, arguing that some are keeping schools closed not because of the coronavirus pandemic, but for political reasons against the will of families.

"The only person I've heard play politics with this is Donald Trump. It's the only one, by the way, wasn't it Donald Trump that when this whole thing happened, he said it's a hoax. It's the Democrats. And then people started to die. And what's he doing now? We need to open schools or the Democrats are playing politics. No, we know who's playing politics with this and he should be ashamed," García said.

Trump did not immediately explain how he would pressure governors, but he repeated an earlier claim that Democrats want to keep schools closed for political reasons and not health reasons.

He made the same claim Monday on Twitter, saying, "They think it will help them in November. Wrong, the people get it!"

García feels the move without a solid plan can be fatal for students and teachers.

"If you don't get this right, if there's an oops here, it probably means somebody died. But when that starts to happen, they'll close schools down again. That will impact the economy. That will impact the funding for public school. It will be a vicious," she said.

At a White House roundtable hosted by Trump, speaker after speaker addressed the need to get students back in the classroom, both for academic and mental health reasons.

They minimized the risk of the spread of COVID-19 among children but acknowledged that it was important to protect the vulnerable.

In making its case, the Trump administration has argued that keeping students at home carries greater risks than any tied to the coronavirus.

Health officials say students need to be in schools this fall to continue their educational development and to access meal programs and services for mental and behavioral health.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some — especially older adults and people with existing health problems — it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.