Members of Congress blocked from entering the Department of Education on Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (Photo from Rep. Maxwell Frost’s office)
Orlando area Democratic U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost was among a group of at least 30 House Democrats denied access into the Department of Education building in Washington, D.C., on Friday, where they’d hoped to meet with acting Education Secretary Denise L. Carter.
President Donald Trump has called for closing down the department, something some Republicans have desired since Ronald Reagan’s first term in office. While Democrats claim Trump could not abolish the department without congressional approval, there have been reports that the White House is preparing an executive order to so.
Elon Musk, head of the unofficial “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) has already declared that Trump “will succeed” where other Republican presidents have failed.
“The Department of Education plays an irreplaceable role in our government, making sure that every single kid in our country has access to a free, high-quality public-school education – Donald Trump and Elon Musk want to rip that education from America’s children and working families,” Frost said in a statement.
“Why do they want to do this? Because they want to take every program and every resource that we have fought for in this government and privatize it, tear it apart, and give it to the billionaires and corporations who can turn around and charge you an arm and leg just to get your kid in school.”
The Department of Education’s is the fourth government building congressional Democrats have been blocked from entering this week, following similar efforts at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Treasury, and the Environmental Protection Agency.
“Today we went to the Department of Education and demanded answers in defense of our students, in defense of our teachers, in defense of families and communities that are built around public education,” said Frost. “We’re not going to let them destroy our public school system and destroy the futures of millions of kids across this country.”
A recent Wall Street Journal poll found that 61% of registered voters opposed eliminating the department.