Trump’s Pick to Lead ED Advances Through Committee
By Maria Carrasco, NASFAA Staff Reporter
Linda McMahon, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Education (ED) advanced through the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) committee on a party-line vote of 12-11.
The nomination now heads to the Senate floor, where McMahon is expected to be confirmed. Last week, the committee questioned McMahon on her career, beliefs on higher education funding, and what she would do as ED secretary.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), chair of the Senate HELP Committee, voted in support of McMahon, said she would be able to reform ED. Cassidy also added that McMahon will hold colleges and universities “accountable to protect all students from discrimination,” including Jewish students who have faced antisemitism on campus.
“For the last four years, the department focused on everything but student learning, with bureaucracy and red tape standing in the way of student success,” Cassidy said in his opening remarks. “We need a strong leader at the department who will get our education system back on track and Mrs. McMahon is the right person for the job.”
A big part of McMahon’s questioning last week was over news reports that Trump is preparing to sign an executive order that would dismantle ED. During last week’s hearing, McMahon said that Congressional action would be needed in order to abolish ED and that Trump will work with Congress to develop legislation to promote a “better functioning” department. Additionally, McMahon said, Trump’s goal is not to defund the programs that ED manages, but rather to have those programs operate more “efficiently.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), ranking member of the Senate HELP Committee, on Thursday voted against McMahon confirmation. He stressed the importance of ED’s work both in K-12 and higher education, particularly through the Pell Grant program.
“Is [ED] a perfect entity? No,” Sanders said in his opening remarks. “Is it bureaucratic? Yes. Can we reform it? Yes. Should we abolish it? No. The Department of Education provides funding for millions of public school students with disabilities they desperately need … It provides Pell Grants to 7 million low-income kids to help pay for the cost of college.”
A date for McMahon's full Senate confirmation vote has yet to be announced. Stay tuned to Today’s News for more updates.
Publication Date: 2/21/2025
Darren C | 2/21/2025 9:58:01 AM
I have to agree, that I'm looking forward to seeing what changes will be implemented at ED during this current administration. ED has been run terribly for decades at this point. Student loan debt is through the roof, and clearly the quality of public education has been declining for a long time. We need major reform if we want to see things truly changed for the better.
Nicole S | 2/21/2025 9:25:19 AM
Trump said he wanted to dismantle ED. Now McMahon is backpedaling saying No he just wants to make it more "efficient". We have seen so far what he's done to make things more "efficient" - getting rid of DEI, firing thousands and thousands of people, approving a budget which will CHOP Medicaid and ruin lives for millions of Americans, defund student loans, and on and on. I would love to see something done that actually HELPS Americans instead of hurting them.
James P | 2/21/2025 8:44:20 AM
Linda McMahon will be a great Secretary of Education. Let's get her confirmed so that she can get our education system back on track.
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