Dems, unions, blast plans to 'dismantle' ed department

BOSTON — Members of the state’s all-Democrat congressional delegation are blasting President Donald Trump’s plans to “dismantle” the U.S. Department of Education, accusing the Republican of using teachers, students and school administrators as “pawns” to advance his political agenda.

In a statement, U.S. Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Reps. Lori Trahan and Seth Moulton and other lawmakers joined representatives of teachers’ unions and school superintendents to condemn Trump’s plans as an “attack on the entire public school system” and pledging to “resist” the efforts.

“Students, parents, educators, and communities deserve consistent leadership committed to improving education for all, not to be used as political pawns,” they wrote. “We stand united in our belief that a strong and well-funded public education system is crucial to the well-being of our country.”

The criticism was expected to continue Monday with Markey holding a press conference in Boston with educators and school administrators to denounce the plan.

Trump has said he wants to return power from the Education Department back to the states by dismantling the agency and providing funding to states in the form of block grants. He argues that the states are better suited to manage their own public education systems.

The Education Department’s primary role is distributing billions in federal money to colleges and schools and managing the federal student loan system.

To be sure, federal funding makes up a relatively small portion of most public school budgets, or 14% nationally — roughly $1 in every $7 of public school funding. Massachusetts received about $720 million in federal K-12 funding for this fiscal year, according to the department.

The federal agency also has regulatory oversight of programs and services for students, including those with disabilities and other special needs. It conducts investigations and issues guidance on civil rights and anti-discrimination laws.

On the campaign trail, Trump vowed to do away with the agency, describing it as being infiltrated by “radicals, zealots and Marxists” whose policies don’t reflect the views of average Americans.

He tapped Linda McMahon, a former wrestling executive who served as the administrator of the Small Business Administration during Trump’s first term, to lead the department. McMahon, who has echoed Trump’s calls to dismantle the agency, is set to testify before a Senate committee next week.

“I want Linda to put herself out of a job,” Trump said in remarks to reporters last week.

Trump is expected to give his new education chief a deadline to deliver a plan to wind down the department but the move will likely need congressional approval. Republicans control of majority of the House and Senate, but some might be reluctant to completely do away with the agency.

Conservatives have long tried to do away of the Education Department, which was created in 1979 under late then President Jimmy Carter, a Democrat.

The Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025, a far-right blueprint to reshape the federal government, calls for phasing out the funding and converting it to no-strings-attached grants to states.