President Donald J. Trump signs an executive order to officially begin the process of closing the Department of Education.
Trump announces that the Department of Education’s useful functions such as Pell Grants, Title 1 funding, and resources for children with disabilities will be FULLY preserved and moved to other agencies and departments.
From the Department of Education Organization Act: “The establishment of the Department of Education shall NOT increase the authority of the Federal Government over education or diminish the responsibility for education, which is reserved to the States and the local school systems and other instrumentalities of the States.” “It is the intention of the Congress in the establishment of the Department to PROTECT the rights of State and local governments and public and private educational institutions…and improve the control of such governments and institutions over their own educational programs and policies.” By stripping the Department of its power, Trump is UPHOLDING the will of Congress, not defying it.