Podcast Summary: Big Take – “Trump’s Plan to Dismantle the Department of Education”
Date: February 19, 2026
Host: David Gura (Bloomberg News)
Guest: Liam Knox (Bloomberg Education Reporter), Barbara Hoblitzel (Former Department of Education Official)
Main Theme:
An in-depth look at the Trump administration’s unprecedented efforts to gut and potentially eliminate the U.S. Department of Education, exploring the impact on students, staff, and the broader blueprint it may provide for other federal agencies.
Episode Overview
This episode investigates sweeping changes at the Department of Education under President Trump’s second term, focusing on mass layoffs, departmental restructuring, and the broader implications for the federal government’s reach. With insight from former department officials and Bloomberg reporters, the podcast unpacks the motivation, execution, and fallout of this initiative.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
The Layoff Wave and Its Immediate Impact
- Early signals of layoffs:
- Barbara Hoblitzel discusses internal confusion and shock as rumors turned into reality.
- Quoting a Republican senator's staffer’s shocked reaction to targeted layoff decisions:
"They were like, what the—" – Barbara Hoblitzel [03:40]
- Layoffs extended to almost all offices, including those serving marginalized communities such as the Office of Indian Education.
- Workforce reduction:
- Under Trump’s executive order (March 2025), workforce slashed by 40%.
- Offices were suddenly “a very quiet place… a lot of empty cubicles and offices without name placards outside the door” – Liam Knox [05:26]
- Wider consequences:
- The cuts impacted not just staff but funding streams and daily support for schools, students, and faculty nationwide.
Department of Education’s Role – and Arguments Against It
- What the department actually does:
- Oversees civil rights compliance, manages student loans, and increases access to education [05:43]–[06:09].
- Enforces critical legislation (e.g., Brown v. Board of Education, Pell grants).
- Historical context:
- Created in 1979 to consolidate various education programs, it’s been a political target from Reagan onward for perceived federal overreach [07:21].
The Trump Administration’s Three-Step Blueprint
- Step 1: Staff Reductions
- Immediate layoffs post-confirmation of Secretary Linda McMahon (a business executive, not a career educator, with a corporate restructuring background) [09:36]–[10:30].
- Methods: Reductions in force, early retirements, buyouts, severance, and attrition.
- Step 2: Program Transfers
- Plan to “return education to the states” as a mantra, though local control already dominates most education matters [11:43].
- Moving remaining programs to other federal agencies:
- Special needs programs to Health & Human Services,
- Career training to Labor,
- Student loans to Treasury [13:28]–[13:40]
- Step 3: Sunset the Department
- After stripping staff and functions, seek congressional approval to dissolve the department [14:23].
“The President made it very clear when he hired me to do this job that he wanted me to be the last Secretary of Education.” – (Reported by Liam Knox, quoting Linda McMahon) [10:28]
Heritage Foundation’s “Project 2025” as the Blueprint
- The administration’s playbook closely follows “Project 2025”, authored by conservative strategists (including current staffers).
- Notable connection: Lindsey Burke, author of Project 2025’s education chapter, now advises Secretary McMahon [12:54].
Legal and Logistical Hurdles
- Court challenges:
- Some layoffs, particularly at the Office for Civil Rights, were challenged and overturned. Hundreds of employees were ultimately reinstated after months of limbo.
- “There were 260 employees…fired…then placed on paid administrative leave…pending a court case.” – Liam Knox [17:48]
- Large financial costs incurred due to payouts for idled workers ($28M–$38M) [18:28].
- Program disruption:
- Offices managing federal grants are overwhelmed, with some cut by up to 80%.
- Grantees now hesitant to ask questions or request help, fearing scrutiny [19:03].
- The Office for Civil Rights now resolves dramatically fewer discrimination/harassment complaints than prior years [19:57].
“The rate at which those [complaints] are being taken up and being resolved is lower than ever.” – Liam Knox [19:57]
Congressional and Public Response
- Despite executive branch maneuvering, Congress has maintained (or even expanded) funding for core education programs like Pell Grants.
- Trump’s “one big, beautiful bill” even expanded department responsibilities, contradicting White House rhetoric [21:20].
“Congress seems committed to education funding. Its latest budget maintained or increased funding for nearly all education programs, despite the staff cuts.” – David Gura [21:20]
Philosophical Divides and Criticisms
- Critics argue breaking up the agency erodes a holistic, educationally aligned approach to policy.
- Operational roles transferred to other departments risk deprioritizing educational outcomes in favor of economics or finance [22:05].
- Administration defends the split as efficient—critics say it “cleaves” expertise from operations.
“Once you move a program into a different office, into a totally different department, one of the goals of having all of these programs consolidated under an Education Department is that their success would be measured in terms of educational outcomes…not by departments where the policy goals are different.” – Liam Knox [22:05]
The Playbook for Other Agencies
- The Department of Education is a pilot case; similar tactics could be used for agencies the administration opposes, such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau [23:07].
- Russ Vought and other administration officials look to creatively circumvent congressional hurdles through executive reshuffling.
“…If the administration wants to do things by executive decree, they're going to need to find ways to do that that don't contradict with the authority of Congress… That could certainly be a template for hacking away at those pieces of the federal bureaucracy.” – Liam Knox [23:07]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
“That impacts students, it impacts faculty, it impacts staff, it impacts the nation across all education. And I don't think there's a real appreciation for just how much these programs touch individual lives.”
– Barbara Hoblitzel [04:29] -
“It's strikingly similar to how a company… might manage its decline.”
– Liam Knox [09:28] -
“Education is local. It should be overseen locally by those who best know local needs… But when they say that… there's an extent to which it's already there.”
– Liam Knox [11:43]–[11:56] -
“This is a way for the department to show, hey, we're still going to fund these programs that your constituents really care about… it just doesn't have to actually be at the Education Department.”
– Liam Knox [20:45]
Key Timestamps
- 03:18: Barbara Hoblitzel on the internal confusion about layoffs.
- 04:11: Trump’s executive order, 40% workforce cut.
- 05:26: Liam Knox on the tangible emptiness at DoE’s HQ.
- 09:28: Comparison to a company downsizing in bankruptcy.
- 10:28: Linda McMahon’s mandate to be the last Secretary.
- 13:28: Program migration to other departments (Labor, Treasury, HHS).
- 17:48: Court battles and reinstatement of Office for Civil Rights staff.
- 19:57: Decreased rate of civil rights complaint resolutions.
- 20:45: “Proof of concept” for moving information and staff to other agencies.
- 22:05: The arguments and risks of splitting policy from operations.
- 23:07: Broader implications for other agencies.
Conclusion
This episode provides a clear-eyed, deeply reported account of Trump’s aggressive agenda toward the Department of Education—revealing not only how the administration is attempting to end federal involvement in education policy, but also how these tactics might be used more broadly. The episode lays out both the ideological motivations and the on-the-ground human and institutional consequences, offering listeners crucial context for understanding ongoing debates about the federal government's role in American life.