In a move that has grassroots conservatives cheering and leftist bureaucrats hyperventilating, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order Thursday to shut down the U.S. Department of Education and return control of schools to parents, states, and local communities.

“Closing the Department of Education would provide children and their families the opportunity to escape a system that is failing them,” the executive order boldly declares. And fail it has. America’s national report card shows 70% of 8th graders are below proficiency in reading—and an even worse 72% below proficiency in math. That’s not just a crisis. It’s a full-blown catastrophe.

Trump’s executive order, titled “Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities,” sets in motion the dismantling of a federal department that doesn’t run a single school, doesn’t teach a single student, yet somehow blew through $268 billion last year.

The president’s decision sparked a wave of celebration across red states and real America. Governors, lawmakers, and parental rights groups praised Trump’s long-overdue move to defund the swamp’s favorite indoctrination machine.

“Virginia is ready to take full responsibility for K-12 education,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin. “We welcome the federal government’s shift of responsibility to the states.”

Indiana Governor Mike Braun echoed the message: “I support President Trump’s bold action to return education to where it belongs and to put parents in the driver’s seat.”

Ohio’s Mike DeWine emphasized the need for local solutions: “Every student, family, and community is different.”

Senator Rand Paul wasted no time pointing out that his father, Ron Paul, introduced the very first bill to eliminate the Department of Education back in the 1980s. Now, over four decades later, Donald Trump is finishing the job.

Congresswoman Mary Miller, herself a mother of seven homeschooled children, called it a “historic day for students and parents across America.” She hit the nail on the head when she said this move finally puts education “back in the hands of families instead of corrupt bureaucrats.”

Public policy organizations like the Heritage Foundation and Moms for Liberty wasted no time applauding the move. “The Department of Education was founded on the false premise that unelected bureaucrats in Washington know better than parents and local communities,” said Heritage President Kevin Roberts. “For decades, it has funneled billions into a failing system that prioritizes leftist indoctrination over academic excellence.”

The executive order doesn’t leave a void—it moves essential programs to departments like Treasury and the DOJ. But for the rest? Gone. The bloated bureaucracy will be swept away—pending congressional approval, of course.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon, who now holds the hot seat, said it plainly: “He wants Congress to be a partner in this, and I believe they will be because both sides of the aisle know that what is happening to education in our country cannot be allowed to stand.”

And that’s the truth. America’s children aren’t failing because of a lack of money or talent. They’re failing because Washington took control—and pushed radicalism over reading, and activism over arithmetic.

This is how you fight back.

This is how you Make Education Great Again.