WWE star Linda McMahon gets BIG role in US President Donald Trump’s government, memes galore on social media

Former WWE CEO Linda McMahon has been named as the Education Secretary in US President-elect Donald Trump's new administration.

United States President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday tapped billionaire professional wrestling mogul Linda McMahon to be secretary of the Education Department, tasked with overseeing an agency Trump has promised to dismantle. He also selected Dr. Mehmet Oz, a former television talk show host and heart surgeon, to head the agency that oversees health insurance programs for millions of older, poor and disabled Americans, and named Wall Street executive Howard Lutnick to lead the Commerce Department.

McMahon led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s initial term from 2017 to 2019 and twice ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for the US Senate in Connecticut. McMahon served on the Connecticut Board of Education for a year starting in 2009 and has spent years on the board of trustees for Sacred Heart University in Connecticut. She’s seen as a relative unknown in education circles, though she has expressed support for charter schools and school choice.

Congrats to @Linda_McMahon, our new Secretary of Education! Honored to call you a friend and can’t wait to see all you accomplish with @realDonaldTrump over the next four years. pic.twitter.com/UnX1WzuAwy

— Glenn Jacobs (@GlennJacobsTN) November 20, 2024

“Linda will use her decades of Leadership experience, and deep understanding of both Education and Business, to empower the next Generation of American Students and Workers, and make America Number One in Education in the World,” Trump said in a statement.

Fans on social media couldn’t keep calm after the news as memes around Linda McMahon went viral on social media. “Linda McMahon will be the first Secretary of Education to survive a Stone Cold Stunner,” one fan tweeted.

Fun Fact: Linda McMahon will be the first Secretary of Education to survive a Stone Cold Stunner. pic.twitter.com/L1Wu8ngnXc

— Brian Robinson, Ph.D (@MrBrianRobinson) November 20, 2024

Education Secretary Linda McMahon after the voucher doesn’t work out for the child George Bush left behind: pic.twitter.com/YrhhlzHOfB

— . ℂ (@ProfJonCollins) November 20, 2024

In nominating McMahon, Trump is rewarding a loyal backer of his movement who, along with Lutnick, has also helped lead his transition team. She was with him Tuesday as he attended a launch of SpaceX’s Starship craft in Texas.

After her time in the Trump administration, McMahon became the chair of the board of the America First Policy Institute, a think tank created by Trump supporters and former officials who have been preparing for his return to government. McMahon has also been chair of the pro-Trump America First Action SuperPAC.

She is married to Vince McMahon, who stepped down as World Wrestling Entertainment’s (WWE) CEO in 2022 amid a company investigation into allegations that he engaged in sexual battery and trafficking. He also resigned as executive chairman of the board of TKO Group Holdings this January, though he has denied the allegations.

If confirmed by the Republican-led Senate, Linda McMahon will be asked to bring the nation’s schools and universities in line with Trump’s vision of education. Trump has made sweeping promises centered on removing what he sees as “left-wing indoctrination” in America’s schools.

Trump has vowed to cut federal money for “any school pushing Critical Race Theory, transgender insanity, and other inappropriate racial, sexual, or political content on our children.” He has promised to fight university diversity initiatives, saying he will open civil rights investigations and fine colleges “up to the entire amount of their endowment.”