The Education Magazine
25th March 2025
Democrats in Connecticut are very upset about President Trump’s latest plan for the national Department of Education. They say it’s a bad idea and that Secretary of Education Linda McMahon is just doing what the President wants.
This all started when President Trump signed an order last week, specifically on March 20, 2025. The order tells Secretary McMahon to start closing down the Department of Education. This happened after the department fired about half of its workers recently.
On Monday, some important Democrats in Connecticut talked about this at a meeting in Hartford. These included U.S. Representative Jahana Hayes, Senator Richard Blumenthal, and Governor Ned Lamont. There was total disagreement with the President’s actions concerning the Department of Education.
Representative Hayes got a little emotional talking about it. She said she went to public schools in Connecticut and is worried about what will happen if the federal Department of Education goes away. “I won’t let us go back to a time when kids with special needs were kept separate and didn’t get to learn with everyone else,” she said. “I also won’t go back to when kids came to school hungry or without the things they needed to learn, like books and computers.“
Senator Blumenthal was very direct about Secretary McMahon. “McMahon is just a puppet,” he said. “She’s there to destroy education in America and get rid of her job at the Department of Education.“
Governor Lamont also said that a federal government shutdown worries him because of potential education funding cuts from the Department of Education. He pointed out that Connecticut receives over $500 million in federal funds that support its most vulnerable students.
Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff said in a statement, “Losing federal money for education would be bad for Connecticut and every other state that gets money from the Department of Education. We’ll try to make up for it, but we won’t be able to cover everything.“
The Clash Over Department of Education’s Future
President Trump says the Department of Education is just for show and that closing it will let states run their education better. He also said that important programs like student loans and money for special education will still be around, maybe run by other parts of the government.
But the Democrats in Connecticut don’t believe this. They think getting rid of the federal Department of Education will hurt education, especially for kids who need the most help. The state’s Attorney General, William Tong, even thinks the President might not have the legal power to close the department without Congress agreeing.
Republicans in Connecticut believe Democrats are defending a failing system, but Democrats will resist the President’s plan to safeguard the state’s education funds from potential cuts by the Department of Education. They haven’t said exactly what they will do yet.
People expect this fight over the Department of Education to continue, and there might be legal challenges and votes in Congress about it soon.
What You Need to Know:
Here’s a quick rundown of the situation:
- The Issue: Connecticut Democrats are in strong disagreement with the Trump administration’s move to dismantle the federal Department of Education.
- The Trigger: President Trump signed an executive order directing Secretary of Education Linda McMahon to begin the process of closing the department.
- Democratic Concerns: They fear this will lead to cuts in education funding and harm vulnerable students, viewing Secretary McMahon as simply following the President’s orders.
- Administration’s View: President Trump argues this will empower states to manage education more effectively.
- What’s Next: This action is likely to face legal challenges and potential opposition in Congress, making the future of the Department of Education uncertain.
