Chris Christie: 'Disgrace' Teacher Unions 'Failing Our Urban Kids'

Teachers unions are bullying American families, particularly "urban kids," and the Biden administration with their refusal to get back to in-person learning, according to former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

"The CDC says that the schools could have reopened months ago, and the only reason they didn't in my state, in other states, is because of the teachers unions saying they don't want to go back," Christie told ABC's "This Week." "And you know who that hurts more than anybody else? Urban kids."

Christie called it a "disgrace" the teachers unions hold as much sway over the American education system as they do amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"If the guy loading my produce at the supermarket can go back to work, a teacher can go back and start teaching an urban kid," Christie added. "They're failing our urban kids. It's a disgrace."

Remote learning during the pandemic has further exposed inequities in American education, Christie said.

"Urban kids are not being educated in this circumstance," he said. "They're not."

The new CDC director earlier this month announced teachers can safely go back to in-person learning without being vaccinated. Teachers unions have pressed the Biden administration to include more funding for teachers and schools to reopen.

The ABC panelists demurred the money will be funded as unions would still work to keep schools closed.

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