WASHINGTON, D.C. – Last week in a Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) committee hearing, U.S. Senator Josh Hawley questioned Linda McMahon, President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Education, about guaranteeing basic safety for women on college campuses and cracking down on campus radicalism.
Senator Hawley brought up Title IX protections for female students, both on the athletic field and in places such as locker rooms and dormitories. He noted President Trump’s recent executive order safeguarding women’s sports and spaces but noted that some universities have vowed to defy it.
“What can be done to ensure that these colleges comply with the law, and that women are safe on campus, and that women are able to play sports without men interfering?” the Senator asked. McMahon promised to investigate and cut funding to universities in violation.
Senator Hawley also highlighted the wave of antisemitism that has rocked college campuses since the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel and the hostility many Jewish-American students have faced. He noted that these universities are taking federal funds while failing to protect Jewish students.
The Senator asked for McMahon’s commitment to “enforce the law […] to the hilt,” “make sure that Jewish Americans are safe on our campuses,” and cut off federal dollars to campuses harboring “these crazy students who are committing crimes, breaking windows, smashing into buildings, [and] trapping Jewish students in libraries.” McMahon stated that she would.
Finally, the Senator received assurances from McMahon that she would work to revoke visas and send home campus radicals who have threatened their fellow students, supported terrorist organizations, or broken the law by trespassing, vandalizing, or committing acts of violence against Jewish students.