Washington, July 15
The US Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to move forward with its plan to dismantle the Department of Education after pausing a preliminary injunction issued by a US district judge in May.
In a 6-3 emergency ruling, the Supreme Court lifted the district judge's order to reinstate employees terminated in mass layoffs, Xinhua news agency reported.
On May 22, Boston-based US District Judge Myong Joun ordered the Trump administration to reinstate nearly 1,400 workers affected by mass layoffs at the department.
US District Judge Myong Joun in Boston stated that the layoffs "will likely cripple the department."
This marks the second significant victory for Trump from the Supreme Court within a week. Last week, the Court paved the way for Trump’s extensive plan to reduce the federal workforce, overturning lower court rulings that had temporarily blocked the initiative.
The dismantling of the education department is part of the US President's plan to reduce the federal government's role in education and increase state control.
A group of 21 Democratic attorneys general, along with school districts and unions, has filed two legal challenges, asserting that Trump's efforts to shut down the Department of Education could hinder its ability to fulfill its essential responsibilities.
Established by Congress in 1979, the Department of Education has several key roles, including administering college loans, monitoring student performance, and enforcing civil rights in schools. Additionally, it provides federal funding to support underfunded districts and assist students with disabilities.
— IANS
Reader Comments
As an educationist, I feel decentralizing education might not be bad. In India too we need more state-level control rather than central bureaucracy controlling everything. But sudden layoffs are cruel to employees.
Trump's policies always create waves globally. Indian education system should take note - we need to make our universities world class so students don't have to depend on US education system.
The civil rights monitoring aspect worries me. With rising hate crimes against Indians in US, who will ensure protection for our students if this department is weakened?
Supreme Court seems to be favoring Trump too much. Judiciary should be neutral. Reminds me how our Indian courts sometimes get political too. Not good for democracy.
Hope this doesn't affect the Fulbright and other exchange programs. Many Indian researchers benefit from these. US should think about global impact of such decisions.
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.