Wikipedia

Linda McMahon

United States Secretary of Education

Linda Marie McMahon (née Edwards; born October 4, 1948) is an American professional wrestling magnate and politician who has been the 13th United States Secretary of Education since 2025.[1] She was the 25th Administrator of the Small Business Administration from February 14, 2017 to April 12, 2019. McMahon was active with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE, known as the World Wrestling Federation, short WWF, until 2002) from 1980 to 2009. She is married to WWE businessman Vince McMahon.

Linda McMahon
McMahon in 2025
13th United States Secretary of Education
Assumed office
March 3, 2025
PresidentDonald Trump
DeputyPenny Schwinn (nominee)
Preceded byMiguel Cardona
25th Administrator of the Small Business Administration
In office
February 14, 2017 – April 12, 2019
PresidentDonald Trump
DeputyAlthea Coetzee
Preceded byMaria Contreras-Sweet
Succeeded byJovita Carranza
Personal details
Born
Linda Marie Edwards

(1948-10-04) October 4, 1948 (age 76)
New Bern, North Carolina, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1966; sep. 2024)​
Children
RelativesMcMahon family
EducationEast Carolina University (BA)

In November 2024, Donald Trump picked McMahon to be his secretary of education.[2] She was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in March 2025.

Early life

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McMahon was born Linda Marie Edwards[3] in New Bern, North Carolina, the daughter of Evelyn and Henry Edwards.[4][5] She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from East Carolina University.

WWE business career

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See the main article: WWE

McMahon was active with the WWE from 1980 to 2009. During this time, the company grew from a small regional business in the Northeastern United States to a large multinational corporation.

As President and later CEO of the company, she created the company's civic programs, Get REAL and Smackdown Your Vote. She occasionally made onscreen appearances, most notably in a wrestling "feud" with her husband which climaxed at WrestleMania X-Seven. McMahon and her husband became wealthy through WWE's success, and the McMahon family name is now synonymous with the professional wrestling industry.[6]

In July 2008, WWE changed its TV parental guidelines rating from TV-14 to TV-PG. In December 2008, at a UBS Media Conference, McMahon described the new rating as a marketing strategy to attract a young generation of wrestling fans and create loyalty to the brand. Due to the TV-PG rating, chair shots to the head were banned, as well as sex scenes, blood, and vulgar language.[7][8]

United States senate campaigns

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In 2009, McMahon left the WWE to run as a Republican for a seat in the United States Senate from Connecticut, but lost to Democratic Party nominee Richard Blumenthal in the general election of 2010.[9][10]

McMahon was the Republican nominee for Connecticut's other Senate seat in the 2012 race, but lost to Democratic Representative Chris Murphy.[11]

Administrator of the Small Business Administration

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McMahon's official portrait in 2017

On December 7, 2016, President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate McMahon to be the Administrator of the Small Business Administration when he takes office.[12] McMahon was confirmed by the full Senate on February 14, 2017, with a vote of 81-19.[13]

In 2017, she visited 68 cities to hear from small business owners and to support the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 supported by President Trump.[14] On McMahon's first anniversary as head of the SBA, on January 29, 2018, The Washington Post said the SBA's progress under McMahon had been "so far, so good" and said she helped fix the SBA's offices' emergency call centers in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.[15]

On March 29, 2019, it was officially made public by the Trump administration that McMahon would be stepping down as the Administrator of the Small Business Administration.[16][17] The resignation took effect on April 12, 2019.[18][19] On April 15, 2019, McMahon was officially named Chairman of America First Action, a pro-Trump Super PAC.[20]

Sexual abuse lawsuit

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In October 2024, McMahon was named as a defendant in a lawsuit, accusing her, her husband, and WWE of ignoring the "ring boys" scandal, in which multiple WWE personnel, including ring announcer Mel Phillips and wrestlers Pat Patterson and Terry Garvin, either resigned or were fired in 1992 after being accused of sexually assaulting young boys.[21][22][23]

McMahon's possible involvement in the ring boys scandal was known before she became Small Business Administrator.[21][23] The lawsuit also said that the McMahons helped create an environment where sexual abuse within the WWE was easy to do.[21][23]

U.S. Secretary of Education

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Nomination

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McMahon with Lara Trump visiting a school in Doral, Florida, March 2025

On November 19, 2024, President-elect Trump nominated McMahon to serve as his secretary of education for his second administration.[2] Her nomination was criticized by educators, including by National Education Association president Rebecca S. Pringle, who said Trump's and her own support of eliminating the Department of Education, as well as McMahon not having strong qualifications to be Education secretary.[24][25]

On January 20, 2025, the nomination was received in the U.S. Senate and sent to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP).[26] The nomination hearing was scheduled for February 13, 2025.[27] The committee advanced her nomination in a 12–11 vote on February 20 for a full Senate vote.[28]

McMahon was confirmed to the office by the U.S. Senate on March 3, 2025, by a vote of 51–45.[29][30][31]

Tenure

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McMahon was sworn in by Jacqueline Clay as the 13th United States Secretary of Education on March 3, 2025.[32]

Personal life

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McMahon married Vince McMahon in 1966. Together they had two children: Shane and Stephanie. McMahon is a converted Roman Catholic, after growing up in a conservative Baptist family.[33] In 2024, McMahon separated from her husband after many sexual assault accusations came out against him.[34]

References

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  1. ↑ Hernandez, Raymond (October 5, 2009). "A Senate Candidate Accustomed to Being Thrown in the Ring". The New York Times.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Trump names former wrestling executive Linda McMahon as his pick for education secretary". NBC News. 2024-11-20. Retrieved 2024-11-20.
  3. ↑ "WrestleMania in Connecticut". The Weekly Standard. July 19, 2010. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved August 14, 2010.
  4. ↑ Dempsey, Bobbi (October 11, 2008). "Wrestling the Details". New York Times. Retrieved August 21, 2009.
  5. ↑ Drucker, Joel. ""Let the Critics Snipe; Pro Wrestling Honcho Vince McMahon Will Tell You, "We're About What People Want"". Cigar Aficionado. Archived from the original on March 7, 2010. Retrieved January 30, 2010.
  6. ↑ "WWE says CEO resigns, names chairman as new CEO". Reuters. September 16, 2009. Retrieved September 16, 2009.
  7. ↑ "streamx.us – de beste bron van informatie over stream x. Deze website is te koop!". Events.streamx.us. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved June 9, 2012.
  8. ↑ "WWE News and Pro Wrestling Coverage Since 1987". PWTorch. December 10, 2008. Retrieved June 3, 2010.
  9. ↑ Cillizza, Chris (July 26, 2010). "The Fix: For rich candidates who invest in themselves, no reliable returns". The Washington Post.
  10. ↑ Vigdor, Brian (November 3, 2010). "Blumenthal scores a knockout". GreenwichTime. Archived from the original on December 6, 2017. Retrieved November 8, 2010.
  11. ↑ Peterson, Kristina (November 6, 2012). "Democrat Chris Murphy Wins Connecticut Senate Seat". The Wall Street journal.
  12. ↑ Pramuk, Jacob (December 7, 2016). "Trump picks wrestling magnate Linda McMahon to lead Small Business Administration". MSNBC.
  13. ↑ "Senate confirmation vote PN48". February 14, 2017. Retrieved 2017-02-14.
  14. ↑ Knauss, Tim (November 6, 2017). "U.S. small biz boss Linda McMahon gets an earful from Syracuse business owners". syracuse.com. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
  15. ↑ Gene Marks (January 29, 2018). "On her first anniversary, the SBA's Linda McMahon reflects on accomplishments, changes". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
  16. ↑ https://www.msn.com/de-de/nachrichten/panorama/the-president-announces-linda-mcmahon-will-be-resigning-to-join-the-2020-trump-re-election-campaign/vp-BBVp8uU
  17. ↑ Andrew Restuccia; Eliana Johnson; Alex Isenstadt; Daniel Lippman (Mar 29, 2019). "Linda McMahon to leave Cabinet for Trump 2020 PAC". politico. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
  18. ↑ Haynes, Danielle (Mar 29, 2019). "Linda McMahon steps down from SBA to head super PAC". United Press International. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  19. ↑ McMahon, Linda (April 12, 2019). "Administrator Linda McMahon Farewell Video". Twitter. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  20. ↑ First PAC, America (April 15, 2019). "Some BIG NEWS from #AmericaFirst: Welcome to the team, @Linda_McMahon! We are honored to have you as our next Chairman". Twitter. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 "WWE et al Complaint" (PDF). Baltimore County Circuit Court. October 23, 2024. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  22. ↑ "Trump transition team leader named in WWE 'ring boys' lawsuit". The Hill (newspaper). October 23, 2024. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 Bixenspan, David. "WWE cofounder Linda McMahon, who runs Trump's biggest super PAC, once hired a suspected child molester on the condition that he 'stop chasing after kids.' He didn't". Business Insider. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  24. ↑ Rahman, Khaleda (November 20, 2024). "Linda McMahon's Nomination Attacked by Educators: 'Slap in the Face'". Newsweek. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  25. ↑ Richards, Zoë (November 19, 2024). "Trump names former wrestling executive Linda McMahon as his pick for education secretary". NBC News. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  26. ↑ "Nominations | The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions". Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. Retrieved 2025-02-08.
  27. ↑ "Nomination of Linda McMahon to serve as Secretary of Education | The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions". Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. Retrieved 2025-02-08.
  28. ↑ Wilkes, MacKenzie (2025-02-20). "Senate HELP Committee advances Trump's Education pick". Politico. Retrieved 2025-02-21.
  29. ↑ "U.S. Senate: U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 119th Congress - 1st Session". www.senate.gov. Retrieved 2025-03-03.
  30. ↑ Spady, Aubrie (2025-03-03). "WWE legend to lead Education Department after clinching final match in the Senate". Fox News. Retrieved 2025-03-03.
  31. ↑ Hunter, Avery Lotz,Kathleen (2025-03-03). "Linda McMahon confirmed to lead Education Department". Axios. Retrieved 2025-03-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  32. ↑ Brunner, Raven (2025-03-04). "WWE Co-Founder Linda McMahon Sworn In as Trump's Education Secretary, Sharing Her 'Final Mission' for Department". People. Retrieved 2025-03-04.
  33. ↑ Drake, Bruce. "What Is Linda McMahon's Religion?". Politicsdaily.com. Archived from the original on November 9, 2010. Retrieved June 9, 2012.
  34. ↑ Reinhard, Beth; Bhattarai, Abha (November 19, 2024). "Linda McMahon made a fortune with WWE. Wrestling scandals now shadow her rise". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 20, 2024.

Other websites

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