NJEA: “No one is fooled” by Trump’s executive order to shutter Education Department

Today, President Donald Trump formalized his ill-intentioned and very likely illegal plan to shutter the United States Department of Education through an executive order. His ongoing use of executive orders to circumvent the legal process highlights the deep unpopularity of his policies, which have little chance of being adopted by Congress due to their devastating effects on American families in all 50 states.

NJEA President Sean Spiller, Vice President Steve Beatty, and Secretary-Treasurer Petal Robertson issued this statement:

“Donald Trump has once again chosen to hide behind the bluster of an executive order to advance a deeply unpopular policy. It’s the only way he can attempt to implement the Project 2025 playbook that America has rejected but that his billionaire backers continue to demand. His fear of taking his proposals to Congress, where his party controls both houses, is evidence of a weak president who lacks the full backing of even his own party.

“There’s a reason America rejects Trump’s education schemes. The overwhelming majority of American families don’t want another tax break for billionaires like Elon Musk or Linda McMahon. They want opportunities for every child to learn, grow and thrive. The US Department of Education has been at the forefront of providing those opportunities for nearly half a century.

“No one is fooled by the false promise that critical programs like Title I and IDEA will carry on after the destruction of the department. When the secretary of education does not even know what IDEA stands for, you can be sure she has no interest in protecting the children who rely on it. When Elon Musk slashes $1 billion from programs that feed hungry students, you can be sure that he does not care at all about their learning. And when Donald Trump claims that he’s giving education back to the states, you can be sure that the money currently supporting our students will be nowhere to be found once he’s done with his budgetary shell game.

“New Jersey families deserve better. We already get back far less from the federal government than we pay in taxes. Now Trump and his accomplices want to make sure none of it gets back to our state to support our students.

“We urge everyone who cares about public education to stand strong against this theft of our children’s future.”