Paula Dwyer , Columnist

Why the U.S. Education Department Never Dies

Conservatives want to kill the agency -- until they are in charge of it.

December 1, 2016 at 3:00 PM UTC

Paula Dwyer is a senior editor with the New York editing hub, focusing on daily and long-form enterprise. She was London bureau chief for Businessweek and Washington economics editor for the New York Times, and is a co-author of “Take on the Street: How to Fight for Your Financial Future.

Will Betsy DeVos kill her own department?
Photographer: Drew Angerer

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

This article is for subscribers only.

Ever since President Jimmy Carter created the U.S. Department of Education in 1979, conservatives have been trying to abolish it. Rick Perry, the Texas governor who in a 2011 presidential debate couldn't remember all the U.S. agencies he wanted to shutter, had total recall over one -- the Education Department.

Will conservatives finally get the job done? Donald Trump, who also calls for the agency's demolition, will be in the White House, and Republicans have a majority in Congress. Betsy DeVos, an activist for school vouchers and critic of public education, has been nominated for education secretary.