President Donald Trump is moving forward with plans to close the Department of Education.
Trump is expected to sign an executive order following through on a campaign promise to disband the department, claiming on the campaign trail that the department was full of “radicals, zealots and Marxists.”
A White House fact sheet states that the move will “turn over education to families instead of bureaucracies. Trump and proponents of eliminating the department have long said the agency has failed American students.
“NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress) scores reveal a national crisis — our children are falling behind,” Harrison Fields, the White House principal deputy press secretary, told Fox News. “Over the past four years, Democrats have allowed millions of illegal minors into the country, straining school resources and diverting focus from American students.”
“Coupled with the rise of anti-American CRT and DEI indoctrination, this is harming our most vulnerable,” he added. “President Trump’s executive order to expand educational opportunities will empower parents, states, and communities to take control and improve outcomes for all students.”
The directive comes after the Senate voted to confirm Linda McMahon, former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), to lead the agency on March 3. McMahon issued a memo later that day outlining her support for the Trump administration’s plans for the department and that she would oversee a “new era of accountability” in the agency’s final days.
“The reality of our education system is stark, and the American people have elected President Trump to make significant changes in Washington,” McMahon said in the March 3 memo. “Our job is to respect the will of the American people and the President they elected, who has tasked us with accomplishing the elimination of bureaucratic bloat here at the Department of Education — a momentous final mission — quickly and responsibly.”
The American Federation of Teachers issued a statement imploring Congress to oppose the executive order and “to make clear to the president that the federal government, in the face of this order, will not abdicate its responsibility to all children, students and working families, who deserve a future full of promise and possibility, not diminished dreams.”
The teacher’s union pointed to an NPR/PBS News/Marist Poll conducted in February that found more than 60% of Americans “strongly oppose” eradicating the agency.
“The Department of Education, and the laws it is supposed to execute, has one major purpose: to level the playing field and fill opportunity gaps to help every child in America succeed,” the American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten said in a March 5 statement. “Trying to abolish it — which, by the way, only Congress can do — sends a message that the president doesn’t care about opportunity for all kids. Maybe he cares about it for his own kids or his friends’ kids or his donors’ kids — but not all kids.”
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
Randi Winer only cares about kids when we point out the
Only folks getting attention in Education Dept are the teacher unions !! Where was the outrage she has now for the kids when she kept the kids out of school during COVID when businesses were trying to get operational but couldn’t get employees back because they needed to take care of their kids . Funny how her focus changes when we see the waste in that department
RANDI WEINGARTEN WAS A PISS POOR LEADER FOR NATIONAL EDUCATION. ALL SHE IS INTERESTED IS NOW KEEPING HER CUSHY AND WELL PAYING JOB AS THE TEACHERS UNION. SCHOOLS NEVER SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE RESPONSIBLITY OF THE FEDERIAL GOVERNMENT AND ONLY STATES WHO HAVE DIFFERENT CONDITIONS WOULD BE ABLE TO HANDLE THEIR CHILDRENS EDUCATION. NATIONAL EDUCATION HAS FAILED AND WEINGARTEN WAS A BIG PART OF THAT BECAUSE SHE WAS MORE POLITICAL THAN REALLY WORRIED ABOUT QUALITY EDUCATION. IT WAS WEINGARTEN WHO PUSHED FOR KIDS NOT RETURNING BACK TO SCHOOL DURING COVID CAUSING LONG LASTING HARM TO KIDS IN THIS GENERATION. WE CAN NO LONGER TOLERATE OUR FUTURE CHILDREN BEING SADDLED WITH POOR EDUCATION AND NEED OPTIONS FOR PARENTS IN THIS REGARD.
N p r and pbs need to be eradicated also!!!!!
Well, it should be abolished. But, I read that since it was created by Congressional Act, it needed to be eliminated by a Congressional act, as well.
It is apparent that news organizations are completely overlooking the basics of the US Constitution concerning the US Department of Education. It was not too long ago that the Supreme Court ruled there was no federal power or authority granted by the US Constitution to regulate abortion. Therefore, the Supreme Court ruled according to the 10th Amendment, giving states that power. If the federal government wants to regulate abortion, it must amend the US Constitution to do so. This example with abortion is about the same when it comes to eliminating the US Department of Education. Nowhere in the Constitution does it grant power or authority to the US Legislative or Executive Branches to regulate education at the national level. The Department of Education Organization Act of 1979, passed by Congress and signed by President Carter, was unconstitutional since a simple law passed by Congress does not amend the US Constitution giving Congress the federal power to regulate education. Congress and President Carter violated the 10th Amendment by not first amending the US Constitution before passing a simple bill to establish the US Department of Education. If the federal government wants to regulate education, it must amend the US Constitution to do so. If the Supreme Court is consistent with its rulings, it will rule on this issue as it did on abortion.