California is fighting back against President Donald Trump’s executive order to shut down the U.S. Department of Education. Ian Cull reports.
California is fighting back against President Donald Trump's executive order to shut down the U.S. Department of Education.
State Attorney General Rob Bonta has filed several lawsuits against the president in the first nine weeks of his administration, and he is prepared to take more legal action Thursday after Trump's executive order that could significantly impact California schools.
Bonta announced last week that California is leading a lawsuit with 20 other states to stop the Trump administration from laying off nearly half the staff at the Education Department, a move that according to the suit is "illegal and unconstitutional."
The Trump administration says the cuts are necessary to eliminate "bureaucratic bloat."
Bonta says the dismantling of the department will have catastrophic consequences for California school districts. He says the layoffs and loss of the DOE would also hurt programs that help kids from low income families, provide vocational training and enforce anti-discrimination laws.
"A lot of the things that we’re seeing are precisely what we prepared for," Bonta said.
Earlier this year, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the state would set aside $25 million for California's Justice Department to fight the Trump administration in court and protect California’s progressive values.
Bonta on Thursday told NBC Bay Area his department is still using that money to ramp up the hiring of extra litigation teams.
"We've been ready and we've been able to go into court often within hours and get restraining orders stopping him often within hours or days," Bonta said.
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In addition, Congressman Sam Liccardo spoke with seniors about his push to save federal funding for Meals on Wheels. He argues cutting the Department of Education positions will not do what the president thinks it will do.
"So if they’re talking about just eliminating the department, go ahead, but you’re just firing people that’s a very small fraction of the total budget," Liccardo said. "If you’re actually talking about cutting those programs, those are core programs that are going to limit opportunity for tens of millions of Americans."
