Betsy DeVos on Lawsuits Against Department of Education Layoffs and Funding

Lawsuits to Block Department of Education Layoffs

• ⚖️ Attorneys General from 20 states have sued to block the Trump administration from laying off nearly half of the Department of Education's workforce.
• 🎯 Betsy DeVos states this action is President Trump carrying through on his promise to dismantle the Department of Education.
• 🚫 The layoffs are described as not cutting statutory programs or education funding, but rather making a statement about the ineffectiveness of bureaucratic jobs for children.

Education Funding and Choice

• 💰 DeVos advocates for Congress to pass a budget that block grants education funds back to states, enabling decisions to be made closer to the students.
• 🏛️ She also supports the Federal Tax Credit Education Choices for Children Act to empower families with choices for their children's education.
• 💸 Regarding concerns about taxpayer money going to private schools, DeVos clarifies that education choice programs send money with the child, not to institutions.

Randi Weingarten's Concerns and Power Erosion

• 📉 DeVos believes Randi Weingarten's opposition stems from her power eroding as attention shifts from systems and adult issues to students.
• 🧠 The power resident in the Department of Education for decades is seen as a threat to student-centered approaches.

USDA Funding Cancellations

• 🍎 The Agriculture Department has canceled two programs that provided food banks and schools with funds for local food purchases, ending a billion dollars in federal spending.
• 🧩 DeVos notes that the school lunch program is not part of the Department of Education and that many siloed programs, while intended to help students, often feed and abet power massing and control in adult jobs.

Future of the Department of Education

• 🚀 DeVos suggests that abolishing the Department of Education would require Congressional action, and while unlikely to be fully abolished, there are many steps to depowering Washington's role and returning it to the states.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 She is confident Republicans will step up to give power back to families and states closer to the children.
• 🧑‍🏫 DeVos also suggests that de-unionizing public schools would benefit children, increasing accountability driven by parental choices.