Supreme Court Allows Trump to Resume Push to Weaken Education Department

Tone & Political Bias: Strongly Right-Leaning

Why: The article details an administration-led rollback of federal oversight and civil rights enforcement in education, supported by conservative justices, with strong pushback from liberal dissent.

What Happened

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday lifted a lower court injunction, allowing President Donald Trump's administration to proceed with major restructuring efforts inside the Department of Education. The move immediately revives mass layoffs and a management overhaul of the federal student loan system.

The court’s conservative majority did not issue an explanation for its decision. The three liberal justices dissented, with Justice Sonia Sotomayor issuing a sharp warning about the consequences of the order.

Background

Earlier this year, the Trump administration cut nearly 50% of the Education Department’s workforce in line with the president’s 2024 campaign pledge to dismantle the agency and return education oversight to the states. These efforts had been blocked by a federal judge in Massachusetts who ruled that the cuts could not proceed while lawsuits challenging the actions remained active.

The judge found that the administration’s justification—government efficiency—was not supported by evidence and instead appeared to be politically motivated. However, the Supreme Court has now overruled that injunction, at least temporarily.

What the Justices Said

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, issued a written dissent warning of severe implications for students.

“Lifting the District Court's injunction will unleash untold harm, delaying or denying educational opportunities and leaving students to suffer from discrimination, sexual assault, and other civil rights violations without the federal resources Congress intended,” she wrote.

She also criticized the majority’s silence, stating that it either ignored or failed to grasp the constitutional risks involved in allowing executive overreach without congressional action.

What This Means

The ruling effectively permits the Trump administration to:

• Proceed with previously halted layoffs at the Department of Education

• Shift key functions—like federal student loan management—away from the federal agency

• Advance broader structural reforms across the federal government without congressional approval

It marks another recent Supreme Court win for Trump’s executive orders aiming to consolidate power over the federal bureaucracy.

Just last week, the court lifted another injunction allowing the president to begin restructuring other federal agencies and to initiate layoffs across departments.

Reactions from Both Sides

From the Administration

Education Secretary Linda McMahon welcomed the ruling, describing it as a constitutional affirmation of executive authority.

“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 said in a public statement.

She added that it was unfortunate that the Supreme Court had to intervene to protect “reforms Americans elected [Trump] to deliver.”

From Advocacy Groups

Keri Rodrigues, president of the National Parents Union, condemned the decision as dangerous and politically motivated.

“This ruling gives the green light to an outrageous and unlawful power grab by President Trump, who is attempting to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education without any action from Congress,” Rodrigues said.

Legal Challenges Continue

Although the injunction has been lifted, legal battles over the legitimacy and scope of the Trump administration’s actions remain ongoing in lower federal courts. Those cases challenge both the constitutionality and the statutory authority of the executive actions targeting the Education Department.

As of now, the Supreme Court’s order does not end those challenges—it simply removes the legal barrier preventing the administration from moving forward in the meantime.

What to Watch

• How the mass layoffs and agency restructuring will affect students, particularly those dependent on federal protections and services

• Ongoing court rulings in lower jurisdictions that could once again halt or modify the administration’s actions

• Future Supreme Court involvement if the lower courts rule against the administration’s broader plans to eliminate or restructure federal agencies without legislative approval