Donald Trump issues executive order to ‘eliminate’ the Department of Education
President Donald Trump has made good on a campaign threat to start shutting down the Department of Education, though his attempts will indeed be challenged in court and constitutionally.
On Thursday, the Republican leader performed an elaborate ceremony to sign an executive order that would result in the department’s liquidation. A semi-circle of youngsters sat on desks around the president, each holding their version of the executive order to sign. The kids followed suit when Trump uncapped his marker to sign the order. When he raised the finished order for the cameras, so did the children. “I will sign an executive order to begin eliminating the Federal Department of Education once and for all,” Trump stated before the signing event. “That sounds funny, doesn’t it? “We’re going to eliminate the Department of Education, and everyone knows it’s right, including the Democrats.”
However, Democrats and education activists instantly condemned the decision as not just another example of presidential overreach but also an attempt to hurt kids across the country. “Attempting to demolish the Department of Education is one of the most damaging and disastrous actions Donald Trump has ever made. This. “Will. Hurt. Kids,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said on social media shortly after the event. The directive directed Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, a long-time Trump loyalist, to “take all necessary steps” to expedite the department’s shutdown, which Congress must authorize.
The Department of Education was established in 1979 by President Jimmy Carter to combine diverse education efforts within the federal government. He established a new cabinet-level position, which Republicans warned would transfer power away from states and local education boards. The department, however, has a restricted mandate. It does not establish curricula or school programs but collects educational data, disseminates research, distributes federal funds, and enforces anti-discrimination policies.
Trump bemoans test results:
Nonetheless, Trump has regularly blamed the agency for low educational success in US schools, which experts say is incorrect. “This country’s education system is not performing properly. And we haven’t in a long time,” Trump stated during Thursday’s event. The United States is behind other countries in worldwide standardized test results, but it is far from the bottom, as Trump has claimed. According to the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), an international assessment of educational standards, American kids have average test results, ranking higher than Mexico and Brazil but lower than Singapore, Japan, and Canada.
Does Trump have the supremacy?
Regardless of his executive order, Trump cannot stop the Department of Education alone. Only Congress may formally close a cabinet-level department. Republicans, such as Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, have already come forward to initiate legislative processes. “I agree with President Trump that the Department of Education has failed its mission,” Cassidy stated in a press statement. “Since the Department can only be shut down with congressional approval, I will support the President’s goals by submitting legislation to accomplish this as soon as possible.” However, if such legislation is submitted, it is unlikely to receive the 60 votes required to break the filibuster in the 100-seat Senate.
