Biden Judge Blocks Trump Admin From Dismantling Education Dept.
A federal judge in Massachusetts has temporarily halted President Donald Trump’s decisive efforts to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, ruling that the administration's recent reorganization efforts require congressional approval.
The ruling came Thursday from U.S. District Judge Myong Joun—a Biden appointee—who also issued a preliminary injunction demanding the Trump administration reinstate more than a thousand employees laid off earlier this year. The administration announced it will appeal the decision, calling it a blatant overstep by an unelected official.
“It is only reasonable to expect that an RIF [reduction in force] of this magnitude will likely cripple the Department. The idea that Defendants’ actions are merely a ‘reorganization’ is plainly not true,” Joun wrote, echoing the talking points of entrenched bureaucracy defenders.
President Trump, fulfilling a long-held conservative promise, signed an executive order in March aimed at phasing out the Department of Education—an agency many on the Right view as bloated, ineffective, and a conduit for federal overreach into local schools. Critics have long argued that education decisions should be left to parents, communities, and states—not centralized in Washington, D.C.
According to the New York Post, Education Secretary Linda McMahon moved swiftly to implement the president’s directive, overseeing layoffs of over 1,300 employees. Coupled with approximately 600 voluntary departures, the agency’s workforce has been halved—from 4,000 to around 2,000.
In court, the administration maintained that the staff reductions were a lawful administrative measure designed to increase efficiency and cut waste—not an outright dissolution of the department.
“Defendants do acknowledge, as they must, that the Department cannot be shut down without Congress’s approval, yet they simultaneously claim that their legislative goals … are distinct from their administrative goals (improving efficiency),” Joun opined, insisting the administration’s actions lacked legal clarity.
The Department of Education was created in 1979 under President Jimmy Carter, and ever since, it has been a target of conservative reformers. President Trump’s move to eliminate the agency represents a direct challenge to decades of unchecked federal expansion into American classrooms.
However, as the ruling highlights, disbanding the department would require congressional approval—likely facing stiff opposition from Democrats in the Senate, where overcoming a filibuster would demand 60 votes.
Responding to the court’s intervention, the Trump administration sharply criticized Judge Joun’s decision.
“President Trump and the Senate-confirmed Secretary of Education clearly have the authority to make decisions about agency reorganization efforts, not an unelected Judge with a political axe to grind,” Department of Education spokeswoman Madi Biedermann said in a statement.
“This ruling is not in the best interest of American students or families. We will immediately challenge this on an emergency basis,” she added, according to The Post.
In a separate development Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a rare 4-4 split decision in a significant case concerning religious education, effectively upholding an Oklahoma Supreme Court decision blocking the establishment of the nation’s first religious charter school.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett recused herself from the case, resulting in the deadlock. Although no formal explanation was provided, Barrett's previous academic ties to attorneys representing St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School likely influenced her decision.
While the deadlock allows the state court's ruling to stand, it does not set legal precedent—meaning the issue could return to the high court in the near future.
Religious liberty advocates have been steadily gaining ground in recent years, as the conservative-leaning court has affirmed the constitutionality of public funds supporting religious institutions and education programs.
Critics of religious school choice argued that a favorable ruling for the Catholic school might have further opened the door to broader public funding for religious institutions or prompted some states to retreat from their charter school frameworks altogether.
The court’s unsigned order provided no detail on how the justices voted, and oral arguments offered few clear indicators. During April hearings, Chief Justice John Roberts challenged both sides vigorously, signaling a cautious, case-by-case approach.
The ruling marks the first 4-4 split since 2022 and underscores how crucial every justice’s participation is in shaping the nation’s legal landscape—especially in landmark cases touching on faith, education, and parental rights.