The 20 Democratic state attorney generals, led by New York Attorney General Leticia James, slapped the Trump administration in lawsuit this week after the Department of Education (DOED) cut nearly half its workforce.
The lawsuit was filed Thursday against Education Secretary Linda McMahon and President Donald Trump, who argues that the president has no authority to dismantle the department and that the cuts will cause “huge damage” to the state's education system.
Doed, who said Trump would close “quickly,” announced on Tuesday it would reduce its workforce from around 4,133 to around 2,183 employees. The remaining workers affected by the cuts will be on administrative leave starting March 21st.
Maddie Biederman, deputy director of communications at the U.S. Department of Education, told Fox News Digital in response to the lawsuit that the cuts are “strategic, internal reductions that do not directly affect students or families.”
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US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon will visit Fox and Friends on March 7, 2025 at Fox News Channel Studios in New York City. (Nomugarai)
Education Secretary Linda McMahon praises the department for taking steps to eliminate “bureaucratic bloat.”
“President Trump was elected after a mandate from the American people to return the Department of Education to the state,” Biederman told Fox News Digital. “The Ministry of Education's Power Reduction (RIF) was carefully implemented in accordance with all applicable regulations and laws. They are strategic, internal reductions that do not directly affect students or families.”
Biedermann also said no employees were affected by FAFSA, Student Loan Services, the Primary School and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) title fund, the Special Education Programs Office, or the Rehabilitation Services Office, which serves children with disabilities.
“The Civil Rights Office will continue to investigate complaints and actively enforce federal civil rights laws,” Biederman said.
Donald Trump of the US presidential election smiles during Turning Point USA's American Fest at the Phoenix Convention Center held on December 22, 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Rebecca Noble)
“While you might argue that this administration is stopping waste and fraud, it is clear that their sole mission is to take away the necessary services, resources and funds students and their families need,” Trump Attorney General James, the New York Attorney General, said in a statement Thursday. “This outrageous effort to leave students behind and take them away from quality education is reckless and illegal.”
The lawsuit comes days after the Trump administration officially stripped James of her security clearance.
Other blue states suing for administration include Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Mainland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin, Belmont and Columbia.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is leading the lawsuit against Trump. (Getty Images)
The lawsuit points to former President Ronald Reagan's attempt to close the department, arguing that the efforts reflect “a controversial understanding that only Congress could abolish the institutions it created.”
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McMahon admitted during a confirmation hearing in February that the administration would require Congressional approval to remove the department.
“The federal government doesn't control education, the state has local school boards doing that, and this is an opportunity,” McMahon told “Laura Ingraham” during Fox News' workforce cuts. “That's why so many people are so angry about it because they're removing opportunities from kids who don't have it.”
Emma Colton from Fox News contributed to this report.
