BOSTON — A federal judge stopped President Trump from dismantling the U.S. Education Department at the behest of attorneys general from Minnesota and 20 other states. Judge Myong Joun issued a preliminary injunction – a setback for Trump actions to weaken the role of education in American culture. Judge Joun’s injunction that requires Trump to reverse the dismissal of half the Department of Education’s workforce. Also: The injunction bars Trump from transferring the management of college student loans to another federal agency and phase them out. Trump is expected to appeal. Among the Education Department’s functions is distributing federal funds to states for lower-income students. In seeking the injunction in March, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and 20 fellow state attorneys general called Trump’s attacks on the U.S. Education Department illegal and unconstitutional. The mass layoffs, they said, specifically violated the federal Administrative Procedures Act.
Verbatim
Ellison: “Tens of millions of students across America depend on the Department of Education to receive the high-quality education that every child deserves. President Trump’s attempt to dismantle the Department of Education and throw our classrooms into chaos is deeply disturbing. I look forward to continuing to litigate this case and stand up for our students, teachers, administrators, and paraprofessionals.”
McMahon. U.S. secretary of Education. Trump’s instruction: Shut down the agency.
Cabinet profile
Congress created the U.S. Department of Education in 1980 to take over some functions from the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. President Trump put wresting promoter Linda <cMahon I charge this January. McMahon, age 76, had no background as an educator but had been a major financial backer for Trump’s presidential campaign with her fortune from the World Wrestling Entertainment television franchise. She has expressed disdain for public education and favors private schooling.