LINDA McMahon’s long career has seen her rise from professional wrestling to President Donald Trump’s pick for education secretary.
Despite President Trump’s intentions to make significant changes to the Department of Education, the nominee underwent a Senate committee’s questioning during her confirmation hearing on Thursday.
Although Linda, aged 76, lacks a substantial educational background, she has demonstrated leadership skills through her extensive experience in managing World Wrestling Entertainment alongside her husband, Vince McMahon.
Even though Linda and Vince are no longer together, as reported by the Washington Post, they have collaborated closely in various business ventures ever since they tied the knot in 1966.
Linda co-founded the WWE with Vince in 1980 and became president in 1993.
The North Carolina native served as the WWE’s CEO from 1997 to 2009.
“My husband and I built our business from scratch,” McMahon said at her Small Business Administration confirmation in 2017.
“Over decades of hard work and strategic growth, we built it into a publicly traded global enterprise.
“I am proud of our success – I know every bit of the hard work it took to create that success.”
After stepping down from her role in the WWE, Linda was appointed to the Connecticut State Board of Education in 2009.
She served on the board for about a year.
She also ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in Connecticut in 2010 and 2012.
During Trump’s first presidential run, the McMahons were avid supporters of the Republican candidate and donated millions to his campaign.
After he was elected, Trump named Linda as his pick to run his SBA in December 2016.
Linda stepped down as SBA administrator in 2019 and spent years working with pro-Trump organizations.
Trump picked Linda for education secretary in November 2024 after long arguing that states should run education instead of Washington DC.
Timeline of Linda McMahon’s rise to education secretary
August 26, 1966 – Linda and Vince McMahon get married
1969 – Linda McMahon works as a receptionist at a law firm in Gaithersburg, Maryland
1970 – The McMahons have a son named Shane
1976 – The McMahons file for bankruptcy and have a daughter named Stephanie
1980 – The McMahons co-found Titan Sports, Inc. which later becomes the WWE
1993 – Linda becomes president of WWE
1997 – Linda becomes CEO of WWE
January 2009 – Linda is appointed to the Connecticut State Board of Education
September 16, 2009 – Linda resigns from her WWE CEO position
April 2010 – Linda resigns from the state education board
2010 – Linda runs for Senate and loses
2012 – Linda runs for Senate again and loses
December 7, 2016 – Donald Trump announces Linda as his pick for the administrator of the Small Business Administration
February 14, 2017 – Linda is sworn in as administrator of the SBA
March 29, 2019 – Linda resigns as administrator of the SBA
November 19, 2024 – Trump nominates Linda to head the Department of Education during his second administration
February 13, 2025 – Linda’s nomination hearing begins
The president doubled down on his hopes to get rid of the federal education department this week.
On Tuesday, he said he hopes Linda will “put herself out of a job.”
The next day, Trump told reporters he wants the DOE gone because its a “complete con job.”
Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, who served in Trump’s first administration, also called for a complete overhaul of the department in a recent opinion piece for Fox News.
“No child should be trapped in a failing school,” she added.
It’s unclear if Linda supports eliminating the department, but she faced hours of questioning during her Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday
Lawmakers and WWE legends alike shared encouragement for Linda during the confirmation.
Wrestling icon Paul Levesque, known as Triple H, even showed up to the hearing to show his support.
Florida Senator Ashley Moody and Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy both shared glowing words about Linda on X.
LEGAL BATTLES
While the DOE faces uncertainty, Linda is also in rough waters with her husband as the two are separated.
Their marriage troubles come after a bombshell federal lawsuit was filed against Vince regarding allegations of “rape, sex trafficking, sexual assault, commercial sex transaction, harassment or discrimination against past or present WWE employees”.
Plus, another ongoing lawsuit alleges Linda turned a blind eye to child sex abuse committed by an WWE staffer while she was president.
Linda’s attorney slammed the claims as “baseless,” this week, according to NBC News.
However, the lawsuit was brought up in the confirmation hearing on Thursday.
Democrat Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin raised concerns about how sexual crimes would be treated in schools and colleges.
“I am so concerned about whether sexual assault survivors on campus can trust you to support them,” Baldwin said.
“They certainly can trust me to support them,” McMahon said, adding that she has grandkids who are in college.
I have deep commitment and understanding of how I would feel if any of them were involved in sexual harassment or accused of sexual harassment,” she said.
“You have my absolute commitment that I will uphold and protect those investigations to make sure that those students are treated fairly on both sides.”
