Indian American Congressman Ro Khanna (CA-17), a member of the House Oversight Committee, has strongly condemned former President Donald Trump’s efforts to “dismantle,” the Department of Education, calling it an “assault,” on public schools and the foundation of education in America.
Speaking on the House floor on February 4, 2025, Rep. Khanna criticized Trump’s actions as a direct assault on families relying on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) for accessible education.
“This is an assault on every neighborhood in America that has a public school that gets Title I funding. This is an assault on every child who gets school lunches in America,” underscored Rep Khanna. “This is an assault on our public school teachers across this country. This is an assault on every American who has gotten any federal financial aid to go to vocational school or to go to public college or to get an education like I did.”
He further argued that President Trump lacks the “constitutional authority,” to carry out his plan, calling it an act of “cruelty,” that threatens the “bedrock of education in this country.” Quoting Thomas Jefferson, Khanna emphasized, “You can’t have a democracy without an educated citizenry.”
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Highlighting America’s historical commitment to education, Khanna noted that the nation’s emphasis on high school completion before World War II set it apart from European countries, where graduation rates lagged behind.
“And yet, President Trump wants to take all of that away, snatching money from our public schools, snatching money from our teachers, snatching money from our families who have kids who need the help. We need to rise up and oppose this blatantly unconstitutional executive order. We need to stand up for public education in America,” he added.
