XPost: alt.government.employees, alt.politics.trump, alt.fan.rush-limbaugh   
   XPost: sac.politics, talk.politics.guns   
   From: yourdime@outlook.com   
      
   Texas' top three statewide leaders attended President Donald Trump's   
   announcement at the White House Thursday where he signed an executive   
   order to begin dismantling the U.S. Department of Education.   
      
   Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, and Attorney General Ken Paxton   
   all applauded the president's order. In a statement to CBS News Texas, the   
   governor's press secretary said, "Governor Abbott supports President   
   Trump's efforts to decrease federal bureaucracy and return control of   
   education back to the states, where it should belong."   
      
   In an interview with CBS News Texas Thursday afternoon before the   
   president's announcement, U.S. Representative Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas   
   said, "This is devastating. They are trying to starve this agency and   
   bring it to its knees one way or another. We know even prior to him   
   signing off on this when they finally did nominate the wrestling CEO to   
   become the secretary, she was tasked with trying to shut down the agency."   
      
   U.S. Representative Brandon Gill, R-Flower Mound, told CBS News Texas   
   Thursday morning, "I think the education authority should be at the state   
   level. I think it was a dubious constitutionality the Department of   
   Education was created to begin with. As you know it was created not until   
   1979 under President Carter and since then, we have seen no improvement in   
   educational attainment."   
      
   The president said Thursday that test scores have not gone up and for that   
   reason and the authority over education should return to the states. Trump   
   said he wants the federal government to become more efficient.   
      
      
   The Department of Education has already made steep cuts to employees and   
   intends to shut down the Dallas regional office of the department's Civil   
   Rights division.   
      
   The president can't shut down the agency by himself. Only members of   
   Congress have the authority to do so. While the House would need a simple   
   majority to abolish the department, the Senate has a higher threshold: 60   
   votes are needed, meaning seven Democrats would have to join all 53   
   Republicans.   
      
   The White House said the Pell grants, funding for low-income and disabled   
   students, will continue under the Department of Education for now, but   
   will likely be transferred to other federal departments.   
      
   Crockett said she doesn't believe Trump when he said programs will be   
   shifted to other federal agencies and education funding will be sent to   
   the states.   
      
      
   "I think it's a bunch of malarkey," said Crockett. "I don't see any refuge   
   for those that are benefitting from these programs right now. It doesn't   
   make really make sense. I don't think this is really a partisan thing.   
   This is evil vs. good."   
      
   Gill said he agrees with the president's assessment of the U.S. Department   
   of Education.   
      
   "It has not done its job," said Gill. "It's done an incredibly poor job   
   and a lot of the funding that comes from the Department of Education comes   
   with strings attached, comes with woke ideologies that are being shoved   
   down parents' throats, students' throats, and the states' throats. I'm   
   excited to see it end."   
      
   While Trump said he believes Democrats will support his executive order,   
   Democrats are promising to fight the administration's efforts.   
      
   Watch Eye On Politics at 7:30 Sunday morning on CBS News Texas on air and   
   streaming   
      
   https://www.cbsnews.com/texas/news/crockett-slams-trump-order-to-   
   dismantle-dept-of-education-top-texas-republicans-applaud-   
   move/?intcid=CNR-01-0623   
      
   --- SoupGate-DOS v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)