Clock ticking on Education Department
Happy Thursday! It’s Rebecca Morin. Last chance: What is the biggest story you followed this week? Email me your responses!
Trump comes for the Education Department
One of President Donald Trump’s signature campaign promises was to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education. And on Thursday, he is officially set to sign an executive order that seeks to eliminate the agency ‒ sort of. Though the White House uses the word "closed" to describe the president's upcoming actions on the department, one Trump official said the agency will continue operating in a smaller form to administer "critical programs." The Trump administration has been planning the executive order for weeks, which comes after the workforce for the agency has been cut in half through layoffs and buyouts. What to know about Trump's executive order.
- The president will sign the order at 4 p.m. ET at a White House ceremony attended by several Republican governors, such as Ron DeSantis of Florida, Glenn Youngkin of Virginia, Greg Abbott of Texas and Mike DeWine of Ohio, and state education commissioners.
- Schools closed and went remote to fight COVID-19. The impacts linger 5 years later.
Through the executive order, Trump will direct Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take "all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return education authority to the States," according to a White House summary of the order reviewed by Paste BN. Reminder: The federal government has no control over school curriculum. Randi Weingarten, the head of the American Federation of Teachers, has vowed to sue the administration over the order.
Get ready. That likely won’t be the only legal challenge Trump sees over the executive order. Trump can’t single-handedly abolish departments that lawmakers created by statutes. Why Trump can’t erase the agency with an executive order.
A politics pit stop
- Could Trump tariffs hurt the US more than the EU?
- 400 federal workers were fired on a call. Here's what they heard.
- 2024 Dem VP nominee Tim Walz: 'I don't think we would have won' if Harris went on Rogan's podcast
- As Elon Musk remakes Washington, we ask: Who is this guy anyway?
- Trump admin cuts project tracking stolen Ukrainian kids
- Their Social Security info was revealed in JFK files. One plans to sue.
Trump vs. the Judiciary
Earlier this week, Chief Justice John Roberts suggested President Donald Trump was defying a bedrock principle of the American government by calling for the impeachment of a federal judge. Roberts, the chief justice of the United States, implied that Trump was targeting the American judicial system itself. It’s an escalation that comes as Trump and his allies have attacked the court system and jurists amid an assortment of judges ruling against Trump’s policies in recent weeks. More on the showdown between Trump and judges.
You asked, On Politics answers: Can citizens remove the president?
A question from a faithful reader, Kathleen of Oak Grove: “Is it possible for citizens to remove or sanction the president?”
The simple answer: no. You’d have to turn to lawmakers to make that decision. Congress under the U.S. Constitution has the authority to impeach and remove the “President, Vice President and all civil officers,” if it’s determined that they engaged in treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. The 25th Amendment also has a controversial provision that allows the Vice President and a majority of the Cabinet, or the majority of another body that Congress designated by law, to initiate the transfer of powers from an incapacitated president to the vice president. Trump was impeached twice by the House of Representatives during his first term. The Senate acquitted him both times.
Got a burning question, or comment, for On Politics? You can submit them here or send me an email at rdmorin@usatoday.com.