Texas high school student, Democratic lawmakers push back against President Trump's order to dismantle U.S. Department of Education
Standing next to Democratic lawmakers from Texas, Ayaan Moledina, a high school student in Austin, blasted President Donald Trump's executive order to abolish the U.S. Department of Education.
"We are here today to stand firm against President Donald Trump's attacks on public education," Moledina said.
Moledina serves as the Federal Policy Director for Students Engaged in Advancing Texas and led the news conference at the Texas Capitol.
"Dismantling the department will lead to major consequences on the success of marginalized students," said Moledina. "Without a federal department, there will be no federal oversight of institutions to guarantee basic and fundamental rights of students."
In making the announcement Thursday at the White House, the president said student test scores haven't improved despite increased funding for public education. State Representative Nate Schatzline, R-Fort Worth, is among the Texas Republicans who support the President's policy.
"We can talk about marginalization all day long, but in my view, this is a waste of time," said Schatzline. "Let's get back to educating kids. Let's get back to reading, writing, and arithmetic."
The president has said funding for low-income and disabled students, and those with disabilities will continue as part of the Department of Education and that oversight of student grants and loans and other programs could eventually be transferred to other federal agencies.
Democratic Congressman Greg Casar of Austin also criticized the president saying he believes federal funding won't go to the states but instead go toward tax cuts for the wealthy.
"Donald Trump and Elon Musk are stealing from America's children in order to pay for tax cuts for billionaires," said Casar. "That is theft. Trump and Musk talk about efficiency, but there is nothing efficient about making our public schools poorer."
"People like what he's doing," Schatzline said. "This was a campaign promise. I am not worried about funding systems. I'm worried about funding students and making sure that they have the resources they need. And that's why President Trump said that he's not going to stop funding for critical programs that students and educators use. Look, this is just another scare tactic."
The American Federation of Teachers and some school districts have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration to block the president's executive order. The National Education Association and the NAACP and other advocacy groups also filed a separate lawsuit against the Trump administration.
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