Congressman Bill Foster issued the following statement in response to president Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at dismantling the Department of Education:
“Trump’s executive order dismantling the Department of Education is reckless, illegal, and destined to fail in the courts. Only an Act of Congress can abolish a federal agency that Congress itself created.
“Gutting the Department of Education would hurt children at all levels—particularly in rural and low-income schools, as well as students with disabilities. Teachers would be laid off, class sizes would increase, and access to college and job training would disappear. Chaos would ensue for students who rely on federal student loans.
“We also must not forget that the Department of Education was founded to ensure the protection of students’ civil rights in response to school segregation. My father wrote much of the enforcement language behind the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that desegregated southern schools. In Congress, I will keep fighting to ensure that our education system remains a tool for opportunity, not exclusion.”
— Office of congressman Bill Foster