Trump Expected to Sign Executive Order to Dissolve Education Department- wna24
President Donald Trump is reportedly preparing to issue an executive order directing the U.S. Department of Education to be dissolved, according to sources cited by ABC News. The order, expected to be signed this week, instructs Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take all steps “permitted by law” to close the department.
According to a draft of the order, Trump’s administration believes that “the federal bureaucratic hold on education must end.” The document argues that the department’s core functions should be returned to individual states, calling the agency an “experiment of controlling American education through Federal programs and dollars.”
McMahon, who was appointed as education secretary, has previously suggested that shutting down the department would require congressional approval. The department employs over 4,000 people and operates with an annual budget of approximately $240 billion.
The Department of Education has existed in various forms since the 1860s and took its current structure in 1980 under President Jimmy Carter. The executive order is expected to claim that the department “has failed our children, our teachers, and our families.”
If implemented, this move would mark one of the most significant shifts in federal education policy in decades, drastically reducing Washington’s influence over American schools.
Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, when asked about the department’s potential closure, responded by saying “I don’t think he has the legal authority to do this. Many of these programs at the Department of Education are about student loans. They’re about help for children with disabilities, that are all funneled through the department of education. Congress created those, and Congress funded them, and the president of the United States does not have a magic wand to wave over it and make them go away. So there’ll be litigation in the courts over much of this to protect the rights of Congress.”
Despite the expected order, legal and logistical challenges remain. McMahon’s previous statements indicate that Congress may need to approve the department’s closure. Additionally, opposition from lawmakers and educators could complicate the administration’s efforts.
As the debate unfolds, the future of federal education policy in the U.S. remains uncertain.