President Donald Trump has indicated his determination to proceed with plans to dismantle the Department of Education, despite conflicting messages from his administration.
“Well, I want to just do it. I mean, we’re starting the process,” Trump stated during a signing ceremony in the Oval Office on Thursday.
A directive aimed at winding down the Department of Education was anticipated to be included among the orders Trump signed that day.
However, just hours before Trump’s public appearance, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed reports of an impending announcement as “more fake news.”
Nonetheless, Trump has been open about his goal to close the Department of Education, a topic he revisited on Thursday when reporters inquired if he had any “second thoughts” that might cause a delay, which the president denied.
“We’re trying to get the schools back into the states. Let the states run the schools,” Trump asserted, misrepresenting the department’s functions.
The Department of Education is responsible for distributing federal financial aid, conducting education research, and ensuring schools comply with anti-discrimination and accessibility policies.
It does not develop school curricula; that responsibility lies with state and local officials.
Still, Trump reiterated the notion that the department obstructed states’ control over their education systems.
“If they run their own education, they’re going to do a lot better than somebody sitting in Washington, DC, that couldn’t care less about the pupils out in the Midwest,” he remarked.
When asked about the future of federal student loans and grants amid these changes, Trump suggested reallocating that responsibility to other agencies.
“That would be brought into either Treasury or Small Business Administration or Commerce,” Trump named other departments while speaking.
“And we’ve actually had that discussion today. I don’t think Education should be handling the loans. That’s not their business. I think it will be brought into Small Business maybe.”
Rumours of an executive order
Trump has been actively pursuing a plan to downsize the federal government, aiming to close entire agencies and reduce the workforce by thousands.
“We’re cutting it down,” Trump remarked about the government’s size on Thursday. “You can’t have that kind of fat. It’s bloat like nobody’s ever seen before.”
The Republican leader has already significantly reduced agencies such as the US Agency for International Development (USAID), closing its headquarters and slashing its staff to essential personnel.
However, no president in recent history has attempted to dismantle a federal department, a move that would necessitate congressional approval.
Media outlets like The Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal have obtained drafts of an executive order that reveals how Trump plans to approach such an undertaking.
The drafts instructed Education Secretary Linda McMahon, a Trump appointee, to take “all necessary steps” to dissolve the department to “the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by law.”
Trump has faced previous criticism for overstepping his executive authority, including withholding funds mandated by Congress and undermining entities created by Congress, such as USAID.
Democrats quickly reacted to news about the potential closure of the department.
During a Thursday press conference, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer asserted that closing the department would significantly harm educational access, especially for low-income Americans and students with disabilities.
“The blast radius of this order will harm nearly every child, every teacher, every family, and every community,” Schumer stated.
“Taking a chainsaw to the Department of Education and undermining its mission to educate our next generation would be detrimental to our schools, our families, and the children Secretary McMahon is supposed to serve.”
What are the criticisms?
As with many agencies Trump has targeted, the Department of Education has long been a focus of conservative discontent.
During his campaign for a second term last year, Trump echoed right-wing claims that the education system has become excessively “woke,” being overly influenced by social justice concerns.
In the 2024 Republican Party platform, Trump and his allies declared their commitment to “ensure safe learning environments free from political meddling.”
A key aspect of their strategy has been closing the Department of Education, which enforces policies like Title IX that prohibit discrimination based on sex.
It also ensures compliance with federal laws guaranteeing equal access to education for students with disabilities.
Additionally, the department plays a crucial financial role in the education system, providing roughly 8 percent of funding for public elementary and secondary schools.
It also allocates federal research grants and student financial assistance at colleges and universities. Overall, the Department of Education handles approximately $102 billion, constituting 0.9 percent of the federal budget for 2025.
Yet, Trump has proposed a vision where the responsibilities of the Department of Education are transferred to individual states.
“We want to move education back to the states, where it belongs,” Trump stated at the first cabinet meeting of his second term on February 26. “Iowa should handle education. Indiana should run their own education.”
However, critics like Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont have warned that redistributing the department’s responsibilities would likely increase the tax burden on individual states, especially rural ones with fewer resources.
“Do we need to make the Department of Education more efficient? I believe we do. Do we need to destroy it and wreak havoc for working-class families across this country? Absolutely not,” Sanders commented during a Thursday news conference.
ABC News reported that the Trump administration abandoned its planned executive order on Thursday due to concerns about possible public backlash.
The legality of Trump’s order
The Department of Education has origins dating back to the 19th century, stemming from President Andrew Jackson — one of Trump’s presidential inspirations.
However, the modern version was formed in the 20th century as the federal government began taking a more active role in public education, largely in response to civil rights issues.
In 1979, then-President Jimmy Carter officially established the Department of Education in its current form to consolidate various federal education programs. Its leader has been a cabinet-level position ever since.
But conservative opposition to the department has persisted for just as long, claiming it poses a threat to states’ rights.
In addition to advocating for the department’s closure, Trump has sought to reshape U.S. education in other ways.
He and Secretary McMahon are strong proponents of “school choice” policies that enable parents to use taxpayer funds — typically designated for public education — to finance private schooling.
Moreover, Trump has indicated that his administration aims to retract what he perceives as ideologically motivated concepts surrounding racial and gender equality in education.
Yet, Trump has not hesitated to condition federal support based on adherence to his political agendas.
For instance, on Tuesday, Trump posted on social media that universities must crack down on students involved in “illegal protests” or risk consequences, including a suspension of federal funding.
His comments were widely interpreted as relating to pro-Palestinian demonstrations but were vague enough to encompass other forms of protests as well.
