Tell Congress: Save the Department of Education!

Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich here. Donald Trump's Education Secretary, Linda McMahon, just announced plans to lay off nearly half the staff of the Department of Education. 

This comes after House Republicans had already introduced a bill to dismantle the Department of Education.

As Trump tries to dismantle the Department of Education, and Republicans in Congress try to eliminate it, remember that his plan to cut the corporate tax rate to 15% would give the 100 largest corporations a tax cut larger than the entire department's K-12 budget.

Authoritarians benefit from an under-informed population, which may partly explain why Trump and his Republican allies in Congress are moving forward with these extreme  plans.

The results could be catastrophic. All federal student loan programs will be impacted. Over $1 trillion in Pell Grants, Educational Opportunity Grants, TEACH Grants, work-study, and subsidized and unsubsidized student loans could be transferred to other departments or sent to the states, leaving millions of students in an uncertain limbo regarding their financial aid, loan payments, and repayment obligations.

In addition, eliminating the Department of Education would remove crucial protections for students with disabilities, while eliminating oversight that ensures equal access to education.

Abolishing the Department of Education would deepen the divide between the privileged and the disadvantaged, accelerating the growing gap between those with access to education and those left behind. The burden would fall heaviest on working families, forcing states to scramble for alternatives with little to no federal support.

America is in danger of becoming a nation where a high-quality education becomes a privilege for the wealthy, rather than a fundamental right for all.

Join me and demand that Congress reject this radical attack on public education!