Half of Education Dept Employees to Be Fired, Immediately
Half of Education Dept Employees to Be Fired, Immediately
Education Secretary Linda McMahon said massive layoffs Tuesday were the “first step” toward accomplishing President Trump’s goal of eliminating the agency — and insisted the cuts won’t affect educational programs.
McMahon, during an interview with Fox News host Laura Ingraham, was asked if the termination of nearly half of the department’s 4,000-person workforce was part of a broader plan aimed at a “total shutdown” of the federal agency.
“Yes – actually, it is,” the 76-year-old responded.
“That was the president’s mandate,” McMahon added. “His directive to me clearly is to shut down the Department of Education.”
The World Wrestling Entertainment co-founder said the Trump administration understands that it will have to “work with Congress” to accomplish the president’s goal, but that Tuesday’s “reduction in force” plan is key to eventually abolishing the department.
“What we did today was to take the first step of eliminating what I think is bureaucratic bloat,” McMahon said.
McMahon, who led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s first term, said the department was mindful of keeping the “good people” at DOE in place so as not to interrupt funding for educational programs.
“We wanted to make sure that we kept all of the right people, the good people, to make sure that the outward facing programs, the grants, the appropriations that come from Congress, all of that are being met and none of that’s going to fall through the cracks,” she said.
Watch video.
McMahon dismissed criticism from American Federation of Teachers head Randi Weingarten that Trump is planning on “getting rid of education” and “taking opportunities away from kids,” arguing that test scores will go up under the president’s plan.
“Well, clearly we’re not taking away education,” McMahon said in response to the criticism from the teachers’ union boss. “The president never said that. He’s taking the bureaucracy out of education so that more money flows to the states.
“Better education is closest to the kids … I think we’ll see our scores go up with our students when we can educate them with parental input as well,” she argued.
On Tuesday, the DOE laid off 1,315 employees that were “redundant or not necessary for the functioning of the department,” according to a senior official.
The terminations add to the nearly 600 staffers who had already left the agency after accepting buyouts and the 63 probationary employees, with less than one year of service on the job, who were fired last month as the Trump administration works to streamline the agency.
“We have to identify where the bloat is, where the bureaucracy is, and we’re going to start there, because the programs, so many of the programs are really excellent,” McMahon said.
“We need to make sure that that money does get to the states, but we want more money to be able to go to the states,” she added. “And that’s what the president has said all along – If we get rid of the bureaucracy the states will get more.”
Trump Picks Jeanine Pirro as Top Prosecutor in DC
May 9, 2025
2 min
New Pope Leo XIV Spent Years Retweeting Criticism of Trump Policies
May 9, 2025
3 min
Trump Floats Tax Hike for Millionaires
May 9, 2025
2 min
Spain’s Deputy PM Attacked in Broad Daylight by Knife-Wielding Man
May 9, 2025
2 min
Bidens Weigh $30 Million Tell-All Book Deal: Report
May 9, 2025
2 min
Trump to End $2.5 Billion ‘Digital Equity Act’ Passed by Biden
May 9, 2025
<1 min
RFK Jr.’s Ex-Running Mate Attacks Trump’s New Surgeon General Pick
May 9, 2025
2 min
Leo XIV Is the New Pope
May 8, 2025
5 min
Trump Considers Jeanine Pirro to Replace Ed Martin as Top DC Prosecutor
May 8, 2025
2 min
FBI Opens Criminal Investigation of Letitia James
May 8, 2025
2 min
Texas AG Paxton Announces Vote Fraud Charges Against 6 People
May 8, 2025
1 min
Trump Announces Trade Deal with UK
May 8, 2025
1 min
Pakistan ‘Kills’ 50 Indian Soldiers in Retaliation Strikes
May 8, 2025
4 min
Bill Gates Accuses Elon Musk of ‘Killing’ Children with USAID Cuts
May 8, 2025
3 min
Trump Plans Executive Order to Slash Drug Prices
May 8, 2025
2 min
Trump to Announce Trade Deal with UK Thursday
May 8, 2025
3 min
Trump to Remove Biden-Era Chip Export Restrictions
May 8, 2025
3 min
Pro-Palestinian Protesters Take Over Columbia University Library — 80+ Arrested
May 8, 2025
5 min
Iranian Terror Cell Plotted Attack on Israeli Embassy in London
May 8, 2025
3 min
Putin and Maduro Sign Strategic Partnership Treaty in Moscow
May 8, 2025
<1 min