Multiple Republican presidential candidates made it clear at this week’s debate that the Department of Education is in danger if they are elected. “Let’s shut down the head of the snake, the Depart…
Multiple Republican presidential candidates made it clear at this week’s debate that the Department of Education is in danger if they are elected.
“Let’s shut down the head of the snake, the Department of Education,” Vivek Ramaswamy said. “Take that $80 billion, put it in the hands of parents across this country.”
Conservatives see the department, which has more than 4,400 employees and in its current form dates back to 1979 after first being established in 1867, as a prime example of Washington’s meddling in Americans’ lives. The time has come to “shut down the Federal Department of Education,” former Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday.
But what would it mean to actually shutter the massive agency?
How could the department be eliminated?
Killing the Department of Education (DOE) would be easier said than done.
Conservatives have said since the creation of the department they want to get rid of it. From President Ronald Reagan and his Education secretary to President Trump and his own, Republicans have decried the department’s existence but failed to abolish it.
That is because the decision to do so is not only up to the president and would have to go through Congress.
“There would have to be some legislation to specifically outline this, but I do think it would need to have the support of the executive branch and, obviously, this is a Cabinet-level agency, so I think having the president — would have to take a leadership role and help to make sure that the proposal is carefully crafted,” said Jonathan Butcher, the Will Skillman senior research fellow in education policy at The Heritage Foundation, which supports nixing the DOE.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) proposed such legislation in 2021 and reintroduced it earlier this year.
“Unelected bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., should not be in charge of our children’s intellectual and moral development,” Massie said two years ago. “States and local communities are best positioned to shape curricula that meet the needs of their students. Schools should be accountable. Parents have the right to choose the most appropriate educational opportunity for their children, including home school, public school or private school.”
DOE did not respond to The Hill’s request for comment.
DOE’s duties would be absorbed by other federal agencies
DOE has an enormous number of responsibilities, including handling student loans, investigating complaints against schools and tracking education progress across the country.
None of the 2024 candidates during Wednesday’s debate detailed how they would handle eliminating it, but conservatives have longed to see many of its tasks either completely eliminated or absorbed into other departments.
“For example, the Office of Civil Rights at the Department of Education. I think that any duplicate responsibilities that it shares with the Department of Justice should be eliminated, and then the rest of that office should go to the Department of Justice,” Butcher said.
In a report from The Heritage Foundation back in 2020, the group estimated billions would be saved …
in a better world, it wouldn’t matter what the heritage foundation thinks. they’re a conservative propaganda machine that pushes climate change denial, transphobia, and voter fraud claims. it’s dishonest reporting to cite them without mentioning their track record and credibility.
Just another thing the Republicans want to eliminate without any forethought or planning for what comes after. And just like their 'repeal' of ACA, they will cry for years that this needs to happen, and they've got a plan to handle it. Only to have it all blown up in their faces once they actually have the opportunity to make it happen.
The Republican party is a dog chasing a car. If it ever catches the car, they'll fuckin get run over.
This is definitely one of those places where it’s easy to get frustrated with rural conservative voters, voting against their own best interests.
Kids in a state like mine already have a huge advantage because we value education and we fund it better. We also can afford to do so.
Conservative states already have less opportunity for their kids, by interfering and limiting their education. Those kids are already disadvantaged because many areas can’t afford adequate funding. I understand authoritarian politicians wanting power and control, but how can parent vote for limiting their kids’ future like that. Department of Education helps fund those schools, while also requiring equal opportunity and requires it be an actual education. Again, I understand politicians spreading divisiveness and outrage to control the populace, but how do parents firstly fall for the BS, and secondly vote against accepting “free” funding to improve their kids’ education?
DoE is one of those “transfer of wealth” programs where blue states pay more, and red states take more. If I don’t mind paying extra to help those disadvantaged, why do they not want to accept more money to invest in their kids’ future. Someone needs to talk to them about “family values”
Take $80 billion, divide by the number of households in US with children ~ 30 million. That’s about $2700. Anyone who’s a parent knows that doesn’t go far at all in terms of education expenses. Good luck privatizing education and funding it out pocket for $3k/yr. Complete idiots.
You can't indoctrinate kids nearly as easily in public schools, and there's no way to turn a profit on them. By contrast, a solid public education makes kids more likely to grow up and vote Democrat. The GOP especially today knows that it can't win legitimately; rage baiting and cheating are their only remaining strategies.
Conservatives have established a series of charter schools designed to eliminate liberal thinking and to embrace Conservative Religious values (hate, discrimination, and conformity).
“Unelected bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., should not be in charge of our children’s intellectual and moral development,”
I think politicians instead of professionals being in charge of intellectual and moral development of children would be the worse choice. Like letting the fox guarding the hen house.
Republican don't want to re-organize how the federal government handles the responsibilities of the DOE—they want those responsibilities eliminated, and the more it harms schools, the better.
For reference, $80b/year is about an order of magnitude less than what the US spends on the military. Suddenly a lot of the ways America ... is... kind of makes sense.
No they don't. If you want to control something your first step is not to break the mechanism of control. They want to say they want to.
Say you wanted to eliminate fossil fuels, if given federal power would you let 50 states or 5 different federal agencies just decide how to do it or would you use the existing control to make a unified standard across the country?