(WASHINGTON) — The White House on Thursday pulled the expected signing of the executive order to dismantle the Department of Education, multiple sources tell ABC News.
A draft of the executive order called on Education Secretary Linda McMahon to facilitate a department closure by taking all necessary steps “permitted by law,” sources had earlier told ABC News.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt quoted a news report saying it was “fake news” that Trump was expected to sign the order on Thursday. She said he is not signing it.
Behind the scenes, there was concern among top administration officials about the blowback the order would receive and the lack of messaging in place ahead of the rollout.
Specially, how the administration would answer questions about how the executive order would impact the school lunch program along with other programs that could no longer exist.
The education community is celebrating this apparent reversal as a win.
“This is a tremendous victory for those of us who are standing up and holding the line and pushing back against the endless chaos that we are seeing from the Trump administration,” an education leader told ABC News.
The education leader, who represents parents and families across the country, stressed that Americans are not going to stand by as the Trump administration prepares to dismantle the agency that impacts millions of students.
“These EOs are not dictates from a king and we are going to challenge him using every resource we can, including the courts,” the education leader said.
The education leader said that the blowback has Trump “shook.” And, hundreds of parents and even some school districts across the country are preparing to trigger a massive legal fight if the expected executive order is signed, according to the education leader.
“This constant state of chaos that he has American families in is unacceptable and we are going to continue to fight him every step of the way,” the education leader said.
An order to dismantle the Department of Education would require congressional approval; any proposed legislation would likely fail without 60 Senate votes.
McMahon has previously acknowledged she would need Congress to carry out the president’s vision to close the department she has been tapped to lead.
“We’d like to do this right,” she said during her confirmation hearing last month, adding: “That certainly does require congressional action.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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