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Who is Linda McMahon? Donald Trump taps WWE co-founder, top ally to be education secretary
What are President-elect Donald Trump’s immigration policies?
On the campaign trail, President-elect Donald Trump pledged to massively deport migrants and revoke certain immigration benefits.
President-elect Donald Trump named his new secretary of education, tapping former Small Business Administration head and former wrestling executive Linda McMahon for the position.
The Education Department provides some funding for public schools, administers federal student aid programs and collects data on US education. Trump has vowed to close the department and redistribute most services to state-level education officials.
“We will send Education BACK TO THE STATES, and Linda will spearhead that effort,” Trump said in a Tuesday statement.
McMahon served as administrator of the Small Business Administration under Trump’s first term from 2017 to 2019. In 2010, she ran as the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in Connecticut but lost to current Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal.
She remained a close ally to the former president as chair of the board for the America First Policy Institute, a conservative think tank founded by Trump aides in 2021 to promote his GOP priorities. McMahon has also co-led Trump’s transition team alongside fellow billionaire Howard Lutnick, who Trump selected to lead the Commerce Department.
Before entering Trump’s political orbit, McMahon helped found Capitol Wrestling, now known as World Wrestling Entertainment, with her husband Vince McMahon. Both spouses were named in a lawsuit filed last month accusing WWE leaders of allowing “systemic and pervasive abuse” of underage children.
McMahon was one of multiple wresting world figures to make an appearance at this year’s Republican National Convention in support of Trump.
“President Trump is a job creator and the best friend American workers have had in the White House,” McMahon told the RNC crowd in Milwaukee.
She was initially considered a top contender to lead the Department of Commerce, coming off Trump’s decisive win this November. McMahon will need to be confirmed by the Senate.
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Afghan CIA fighters face stark reality in the U.S. : Consider This from NPR
A makeshift memorial stands outside the Farragut West Metro station on December 01, 2025 in Washington, DC. Two West Virginia National Guard troops were shot blocks from the White House on November 26.
Heather Diehl/Getty Images
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Heather Diehl/Getty Images
They survived some of the Afghanistan War’s most grueling and treacherous missions.
But once they evacuated to the U.S., many Afghan fighters who served in “Zero Units” found themselves spiraling.
Among their ranks was Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the man charged with killing one National Guard member and seriously injuring a second after opening fire on them in Washington, D.C. on Thanksgiving Eve.
NPR’s Brian Mann spoke to people involved in Zero Units and learned some have struggled with mental health since coming to the U.S. At least four soldiers have died by suicide.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
This episode was produced by Erika Ryan and Karen Zamora. It was edited by Alina Hartounian and Courtney Dorning.
Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.
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Video: Behind the Supreme Court’s Push to Expand Presidential Power
new video loaded: Behind the Supreme Court’s Push to Expand Presidential Power
By Ann E. Marimow, Claire Hogan, Stephanie Swart and Pierre Kattar
December 12, 2025
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Europe’s rocky relations with Donald Trump
Gideon talks to Jens Stoltenberg, Nato’s former secretary-general, about Ukraine and Europe’s strategic priorities after recent scathing criticism from US president Donald Trump over its failure to end the war: ‘They talk but they don’t produce.’ Clip: Politico
Free links to read more on this topic:
The White House’s rupture with the western alliance
Trump pushes for ‘free economic zone’ in Donbas, says Zelenskyy
Friedrich Merz offers to host Ukraine talks so deal not done ‘above Europe’s head’
Ukraine’s ‘fortress belt’ that Donald Trump wants to trade for peace
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