July 15, 2025
The ruling lifts a lower court’s ruling that had indefinitely paused action
The Supreme Court ruled Monday that President Donald Trump can proceed with his plan to gut the Department of Education and carry out mass layoffs. It’s another win for Trump, thanks to the conservative majority on the high court.
The ruling lifts a lower court’s ruling that had indefinitely paused Trump’s plan. The Supreme Court’s decision put that ruling on hold as legal challenges continue to play out.
Within two hours, the Education Department sent notices to employees indicating that it will resume shrinking the department immediately, CNN reported. Nearly 1,400 employees could be laid off.
“The Department appreciates your service and recognizes the difficulty of the moment,” read a notice sent to some employees. Some of the Education Department staff who received the notices are those who were laid off in April before a federal judge intervened. The lower court blocked his effort by highlighting that the Education Department was created by Congress and should only be dismantled by Congress.
The notice continued, “This RIF action is not a reflection upon your performance or conduct and is solely due to agency restructuring, as described in previous correspondence.”
The department told employees they would be let go on Aug. 1.
Liberal Judges Call Majority’s Decision ‘Indefensible’
The Supreme Court’s decision was split 6-3, with the three liberals on the court ruling against it. In a scathing dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the court’s senior liberal member, wrote that he colleagues made an “indefensible” decision to let Trump proceed with taking part in an agency that should be dismantled only by Congress.
“The majority is either willfully blind to the implications of its ruling or naive, but either way, the threat to our Constitution’s separation of powers is grave,” Sotomayor wrote.
Trump praised the high court’s decision on Truth Social.
“The United States Supreme Court has handed a Major Victory to Parents and Students across the Country by declaring the Trump Administration may proceed on returning the functions of the Department of Education BACK TO THE STATES,” Trump said, thanking the Supreme Court for their decision. “Now, with this GREAT Supreme Court Decision, our Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon, may begin this very important process.”
According to McMahon, the cuts will “promote efficiency and accountability” and return education to the states.
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