A federal appeals court just slammed the brakes on President Trump’s bold bid to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education. The decision, handed down Wednesday, keeps a district court’s injunction in place, thwarting plans to slash jobs and shutter the agency. It’s a setback for conservatives itching to return education to state control.
Fox News reported that in March 2025, Trump signed an executive order to close the Department of Education and shift its powers to states. This move, announced March 11, sparked lawsuits from Washington, D.C., two states, five labor groups, and two school districts.
Their legal salvo demanded a halt to the planned Reduction in Force, which would axe nearly half the department’s workforce. Education Secretary Linda McMahon, alongside Trump, faced a lawsuit filed March 13 in Massachusetts.
The plaintiffs argued the department’s closure and function transfers, announced March 21, overstepped executive authority. A district court agreed, merging the cases and issuing an injunction to stop the administration’s actions.
The Trump administration appealed, seeking a pause on the district court’s order. The federal appeals court, however, wasn’t buying it, denying the request and keeping the injunction intact.
“What is at stake,” the appeals court noted, is whether a decades-old department can function or face “mass termination' to force its closure.
The court’s ruling leaned heavily on the district court’s findings. “Given the extensive findings made by the District Court and the absence of any contrary evidence,” the appeals court wrote, a stay wasn’t justified. This leaves Trump’s team scrambling while the department’s fate hangs in the balance.
Republicans, undeterred, pushed forward with the “Returning Education to Our States Act” in April 2025. The bill, championed by Sen. Mike Rounds, aims to scatter the department’s duties across agencies like Interior, Treasury, and Defense. It’s a clever end-run, but formal abolition still needs Congress to act.
Sen. Rounds, speaking to Fox News Digital, called the Department of Education an “oversized bureaucracy” dictating “one-size-fits-all policies.”
His critique resonates with conservatives who see federal meddling as a barrier to local innovation. Yet, the appeals court’s decision suggests the judiciary isn’t ready to let the department vanish quietly.
The “Returning Education to Our States Act” offers schools more freedom, scrapping standardized test mandates to identify struggling institutions.
It also lets states set teacher certification and professional development standards. For MAGA supporters, this is a win for local control over progressive mandates.
Still, the bill faces a tough road in the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Debate looms, and with the appeals court’s ruling, the administration’s timeline is in jeopardy. Legal hurdles are piling up faster than a D.C. traffic jam.
McMahon’s announcement to cut nearly 50% of the department’s staff fueled the fire. Critics argue this gutting would cripple the agency’s ability to serve students and states. The courts, for now, agree, prioritizing stability over swift reform.
Rounds met with McMahon to hash out the bill’s details, signaling GOP unity on education reform. Their vision: dismantle a department they view as bloated and return power to communities. But judicial pushback shows even bold executive orders can’t bypass checks and balances.
Trump’s appointment of Jeanine Pirro as interim U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., on May 28 adds another layer. Replacing Ed Martin, whose January 6 views sparked Senate resistance, Pirro’s role may influence how the administration navigates these legal battles. Her prosecutorial grit could sharpen their strategy.
The appeals court’s refusal to budge underscores a broader truth: dismantling a federal agency isn’t a simple pen stroke. “The appellants’ motion for a stay is denied,” the court declared, citing the “apparent consequences” of disrupting the department’s work. Turns out, actions have consequences.
For now, the Department of Education limps along, its functions intact but its future uncertain. Trump’s executive order, while ambitious, can’t fully erase a cabinet department without Congress’s blessing. The judiciary’s firm stance keeps the status quo, for better or worse.
