Ilhan Omar Confronts Linda McMahon Over Rescinding $37 Million Fine Against Grand Canyon University

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At today's House Education Committee hearing, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) questioned Education Secretary Linda McMahon.

Transcript

00:00The gentleman, I recognize now the gentlelady from Minnesota, Ms. Omar.

00:04Thank you, Chairman, and thank you, Madam Secretary, for being here with us.

00:09Is it fair to assume that you are aware that when a student loan borrower is defrauded by a school

00:18that there is a provision in law called the borrower defense?

00:22Yes, I am.

00:22Okay.

00:23It is a straightforward concept.

00:26A student should not be forced to repay loans to schools that lie to them.

00:30We know that millions of federal grants and loans go out the door while students are left

00:39with education that is not worthy.

00:43So I was actually surprised a few weeks ago when your department quietly rescinded $37 million fine

00:52that was placed against Grand Canyon University.

00:55Can you explain why that happened?

00:59Let me think for a second.

01:04Let me review my notes on that because there were a couple of things I wanted to make sure

01:09I covered with you.

01:10We really found that the accusations against Grand Canyon, which is a faith-based organization,

01:18and we looked at all the facts of the case.

01:21I am familiar with the university.

01:23My question is, how are those students going to be made whole if you are not allowing the

01:30university to pay the fines?

01:33What's the plan?

01:34I'm not sure that that's the right analysis of it, but I will look into it further and get back to you.

01:41And you'll give me back a writing?

01:42Yes, I will.

01:42Writing?

01:42Okay.

01:44Because we know that the president in whom you serve had a fraudulent university called

01:53Trump University, and he himself settled three lawsuits before becoming president.

01:59We know that there are roughly 1.4 million borrowers who have been approved for a borrower defense

02:06discharge and are still waiting for that process.

02:08How are you clearing out that backlog?

02:11In terms of the borrowed defense funds?

02:14Uh-huh.

02:14There are lists of that.

02:16I'll be happy to get back to you with those numbers.

02:18Okay.

02:18And while those students wait, can you give us a commitment that you are not going to collect that debt?

02:25Yeah, I'll have to get back to you on that as to what the situation is.

02:30I don't understand how that's a difficult question to say yes to.

02:33They've been defrauded.

02:35They are waiting for relief.

02:37While they wait for their relief, they shouldn't have to pay back that debt.

02:42Well, if they've been defrauded and it's been adjudicated that they've been defrauded,

02:47then I'll get back to you as to what the time frame is and why there's a holdup if there is.

02:52Okay.

02:52I'm not sure as I sit here right now.

02:54Wonderful.

02:55There was a, I know that you've been questioned a lot on IDEA and its funding.

03:05My, I won't, we litigate those questions.

03:09I just have two particular questions to address or two areas to address.

03:13We know that the IDEA, that you have gotten rid of the legal team that guides the states in implementation.

03:24How are you, um, going to rectify that?

03:29I don't know what you mean by, we've gotten rid of the legal team.

03:32Uh, we have had some reduction in force of, uh, members.

03:36There was a firing of the entire legal team.

03:39Well, we have other lawyers in place at the Department of Education and we are fully.

03:44The entire team that was, that was for IDEA has been fired.

03:51So how are you addressing that?

03:54Because we have other lawyers who are in place that can handle those things.

03:58And as I mentioned before, we are, have not missed any of our statutory requirements.

04:03Well, I do believe that that firing hurts the implementation.

04:09We also know that you have gutted the Office of Civil Rights, um, uh, when there is already

04:15investigation backlog.

04:17How are you, uh, going to fix the discrimination claim cases that are out there?

04:24Well, there, there are, excuse me, there are cases that, uh, we're looking into and again,

04:31we have not missed any of our statutory requirements in terms of OCR.

04:35We also have a task force.

04:36There is a backlog.

04:37There are a lot of, there is a backlog.

04:38There are a lot of kids in our schools that are waiting for relief.

04:42When you get rid of the people that are supposed to carry out those investigations, how are you

04:48to assure that those kids will not continue to be harmed?

04:52We are talking about so many situations in where kids are being discriminated against and

04:57you got rid of the people that investigate those investigations.

05:00So those kids can protect themselves from the invest, from discrimination.

05:05Well, we still have a very strong and capable staff in OCR.

05:10Then, then you wouldn't have a backlog if that was the case.

05:13There is a current backlog and I would love for you to stop just saying words and to actually

05:20do the work that you are charged by statute and I yield back.

05:23I thank you.

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