Healthcare Under Attack. Nurses Share the Impacts of Trump’s Government Shutdown
Release Date: 10/06/2025
Taking on Trump on Student Debt—and Winning
Union Talk
For months, the Trump administration has illegally blocked people from accessing student debt relief they are entitled to. The AFT took President Donald Trump and Education Secretary Linda McMahon to court for their student loan lawlessness—and won! In this episode of Union Talk, AFT President Randi Weingarten discusses what this court victory means for borrowers, how people can access relief, and the union’s continued fight to get people debt relief and make college affordable for all. Weingarten is joined by Protect Borrowers Legal Director Winston Berkman-Breen to review the impact of...
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Healthcare Under Attack. Nurses Share the Impacts of Trump’s Government Shutdown
Union Talk
AFT President Randi Weingarten is joined by three nurses to take us to the frontlines of the Trump and congressional Republican government shutdown. They share how the shutdown and continued attacks on healthcare are impacting them, their patients and their communities. Without action, millions of Americans will lose healthcare, hospitals will close, and premiums will skyrocket. The nurses take us inside their hospitals to talk about the real-life impacts of the decisions by the president and congressional Republicans to shut down the government rather than fix healthcare for Americans.
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A Back-to-School Season Like No Other
Union Talk
AFT President Randi Weingarten talks to educators about their aspirations and anxieties as they enter a new school year. This is a back-to-school period like no other, fueled by anxieties over historic federal cuts, raids tearing children and families apart, city occupations, and fears about the future of our country. Weingarten and educators discuss how this is impacting schools and students and how educators continue to show up to teach, support, nurture and help students reach their dreams.
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The Big Betrayal
Union Talk
AFT President Randi Weingarten unpacks the dangers for working people in the big, ugly bill being pushed through Congress by President Donald Trump and Republicans. The bill would affect nearly every family in America through horrific cuts to healthcare, education and critical services to fund tax breaks for the rich. Weingarten is joined by Alaska nurse Shannon Davenport, Connecticut nurse Heather Brauth and Virginia educator Laquetta Mackey to discuss how this bill will hurt patients, kids and our communities and what we can do to stop it from becoming law.
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World Pride
Union Talk
AFT President Randi Weingarten sits down with Los Angeles educator and United Teachers Los Angeles member Skye Tooley, as well as student activists Rehman Hassan, Ray Loux and Erica McPheeters for a special live episode of Union Talk during World Pride in Washington, D.C. World Pride comes at a time of growing attacks against LGBTQIA+ people, and this discussion focuses on speaking out, staying engaged, and advancing basic humanity for all across generations. Pride is a time of both activism and celebration, and the panelists discuss how to keep the joy through this ongoing fight for freedoms...
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Higher Education Under Attack
Union Talk
President Trump has declared war on America’s colleges and universities. The administration has launched investigations into dozens of colleges and universities and stripped billions in research grants from schools. The administration is disappearing students who are in the U.S. legally for exercising their First Amendment rights. Three professors and union leaders join AFT President Randi Weingarten to provide a view from the frontlines of Trump’s war on knowledge and discuss how we can fight back.
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Economic Opportunity or Destruction?
Union Talk
We're talking economics on this episode of Union Talk, but you won’t need a Ph.D. to join the conversation. This episode focuses on how the economic policies of President Trump and Elon Musk hurt working and middle-class Americans—many of the same people who voted for Trump hoping he would help reduce costs and help working people achieve a better life. Economic expert Damon Silvers joins to set the baseline for the damage Trump and Musk are doing, and teachers Greg Cruey and Ternesha Burroughs share what their communities in Minnesota and West Virginia are experiencing. The group also...
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Wrecking Ball: Teachers on the Devastating Impact Trump’s Education Cuts Will Have on Kids
Union Talk
Direct from the classroom, four teachers join AFT President Randi Weingarten to talk about the devasting impact that President Trump’s and Elon Musk’s education cuts will have on their students and communities. From ripping away services for special education students and supports for impoverished kids to robbing working-class students of Pell Grants and the chance to go to college, social studies teachers Heather Stambaugh and Rodney Fresh and special education teachers Marsena Toney and Jennifer Graves give a firsthand account of how these cuts will hurt kids. They also discuss ways they...
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On Strike: Oregon Healthcare Professionals Stand Up for Better Care Conditions
Union Talk
5,000 nurses, physicians and other medical professionals are on strike in Oregon, the largest healthcare strike in the state’s history. After a day on the strike line, Dr. Lesley Liu and Rebekah Van Dyke, RN, join AFT President Randi Weingarten to share why they’re on strike and how they’re standing up for their patients, their profession and a fix to a healthcare system that puts profits before patients and caregivers.
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Union Talk: Finding Common Ground
Union Talk
AFT President Randi Weingarten sits down with two union members — one who voted for Harris and one who voted for Trump – to discuss not only what the November election meant to them, but how we can all find common ground within our union to fight for workers across America.
info_outlineAFT President Randi Weingarten is joined by three nurses to take us to the frontlines of the Trump and congressional Republican government shutdown. They share how the shutdown and continued attacks on healthcare are impacting them, their patients and their communities. Without action, millions of Americans will lose healthcare, hospitals will close, and premiums will skyrocket. The nurses take us inside their hospitals to talk about the real-life impacts of the decisions by the president and congressional Republicans to shut down the government rather than fix healthcare for Americans.