An executive order issued on Thursday, March 20, directs Education Secretary Linda McMahon to begin dissolving the Jimmy Carter-era agency
President Donald Trump has ordered Education Secretary Linda McMahon to begin the work to dismantle the Department of Education.
An executive order that was ceremoniously announced on Thursday, March 20, acknowledges that Trump does not have the power to formally abolish the Education Department, which can only be done by Congress. Instead, it directs McMahon to take the necessary steps to dissolve the department to the extent that she is able.
Reports suggested that McMahon may attempt to shift the department’s functions to other government entities, which could be challenged in courts, and otherwise continue with mass staffing and program reductions.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt clarified to reporters on Thursday that “critical functions” of the department would remain in tact, including student loans and Pell Grants.
Thursday’s executive order comes after thousands of officials in the Department of Education were terminated, starting with dozens of staffers who were placed on leave in early February in relation to axing diversity, equity and inclusion programs, and continuing with a 50% workforce reduction in March to “[restore] the greatness of the United States education system.”
Prior to the mass layoff announcement on March 11, the department sent an email to staffers offering up to $25,000 in cash payouts to those who voluntarily resigned, Politico reported.
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Education has been a frequent talking point for Trump since his first stint in the Oval Office.
In Time‘s Person of the Year interview published in December, Trump called for “a virtual closure of Department of Education in Washington.”
“Well, you’re going to need some people just to make sure they’re teaching English in the schools. Okay, you know English and mathematics, let’s say. But we want to move education back to the states,” he said.
Last July, he shared similar sentiments when, in addition to proposing that the department be shuttered, he expressed an interest in cutting “federal funding for any school or program pushing critical race theory, gender ideology or other inappropriate racial, sexual or political content on our children.”
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Trump has criticized the Department of Education — which was established in 1979 under President Jimmy Carter — for being “ineffective,” stating that he wanted to “find and remove the radicals who have infiltrated the federal Department of Education.”
A roadmap for bringing down the Department of Education was also included in a Trump-aligned think tank’s 900-page manifesto called Project 2025.
When Trump announced McMahon — co-founder of World Wrestling Entertainment — as his pick for education secretary, he said she was nominated because she “will fight tirelessly to expand ‘Choice’ to every State in America and empower parents to make the best Education decisions for their families.”
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“We will send Education BACK TO THE STATES, and Linda will spearhead that effort,” he added.
McMahon was confirmed by the Senate on March 3 in a 51-45 vote along party lines. Shortly after, she outlined her “final mission” for the department that she was tasked with dismantling.
