Supreme Court Greenlights Trump’s Education Department Layoffs – A Major Win for Parents and Students!

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has given President Donald Trump the green light to proceed with his plan to dismantle the Education Department, including the layoff of nearly 1,400 employees.

In a 6-3 decision on Monday, the court suspended an order from U.S. District Judge Myong Joun in Boston. Judge Joun had issued a preliminary injunction halting the layoffs and questioning the broader plan, stating that the layoffs “will likely cripple the department.” A federal appeals court had previously refused to stay the order while the administration appealed.

This ruling allows the administration to resume its efforts to wind down the department, fulfilling one of Trump’s major campaign promises.

Trump celebrated the decision on his social media platform Monday night, declaring that the high court “has handed a Major Victory to Parents and Students across the Country.” He added that the ruling permits his administration to begin the “very important process” of returning many of the department’s functions “BACK TO THE STATES.”

As is typical in emergency appeals, the court did not explain its decision favoring Trump. However, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, writing for the dissenting liberal justices, criticized the majority for enabling what she sees as legally questionable actions by the administration.

“When the Executive publicly announces its intent to break the law, and then executes on that promise, it is the Judiciary’s duty to check that lawlessness, not expedite it,” Sotomayor wrote, joined by Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Elena Kagan.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon expressed frustration that it required the Supreme Court’s intervention to advance Trump’s plan.

“Today, the Supreme Court again confirmed the obvious: The President of the United States, as the head of the Executive Branch, has the ultimate authority to make decisions about staffing levels, administrative organization, and day-to-day operations of federal agencies,” McMahon stated.

A lawyer representing the Massachusetts cities and education groups that sued over the plan indicated that the legal battle will continue, emphasizing that no court has yet ruled on the legality of the administration’s actions.

“Without explaining to the American people its reasoning, a majority of justices on the U.S. Supreme Court have dealt a devastating blow to this nation’s promise of public education for all children. On its shadow docket, the Court has yet again ruled to overturn the decision of two lower courts without argument,” said Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward.

The Supreme Court has consistently sided with Trump in his efforts to reshape the federal government, even as lower courts have found that the administration’s actions likely violate federal law. Last week, the justices cleared the way for Trump’s plan to significantly reduce the size of the federal workforce. In education, the high court has previously allowed cuts to teacher-training grants to proceed.

In a separate development on Monday, more than 20 states filed a lawsuit against the administration over billions of dollars in frozen education funding for after-school care, summer programs, and other initiatives.

Education Department employees targeted for layoffs have been on paid leave since March, according to a union representing some of the agency’s staff.

Judge Joun’s order had prevented the department from fully terminating these employees, although none had been allowed to return to work, according to the American Federation of Government Employees Local 252. Without Joun’s order, the workers would have faced termination in early June.

Earlier in June, the Education Department stated it was “actively assessing how to reintegrate” the employees. The department emailed staff, asking them to disclose any new employment, claiming the request was intended to “support a smooth and informed return to duty.” The current case involves two consolidated lawsuits alleging that Trump’s plan amounts to an illegal closure of the Education Department.

One lawsuit was filed by the Somerville and Easthampton school districts in Massachusetts, along with the American Federation of Teachers and other education groups. The other legal action was initiated by a coalition of 21 Democratic attorneys general.

The lawsuits argue that the layoffs have left the department unable to fulfill congressionally mandated responsibilities, including duties to support special education, distribute financial aid, and enforce civil rights laws.