Elizabeth Warren demands McMahon resignation as US moves to dismantle Education Department

Senator Elizabeth Warren has publicly called for Linda McMahon to resign following a sweeping plan by the Trump administration to dismantle major functions of the U.S. Department of Education.

In an op-ed published in USA Today, Warren wrote she first questioned McMahon at her swearing-in whether she believed she could shut down the Department. McMahon denied having that power, but now “here we are,” Warren wrote. The Department announced on Nov. 18 that it would transfer its largest grant and aid programs to other agencies, including shifting K–12 funding (Title I funds) to the U.S.

Department of Labor.

For schools in low-income neighborhoods and for families dependent on disability-support services, the changes could be devastating. Title I funding helps pay for teachers, textbooks, afterschool or tutoring programs, all critical for students in underserved communities. With the funding move, many fear bigger class sizes, fewer support services, and stretched resources.

For students with disabilities, the risk is especially high: the Education Department had long provided essential services such as speech therapy, individual aides and adapted equipment. Under McMahon’s plan, those supports may shrink dramatically, depriving vulnerable children of crucial help.

Warren argues the plan represents more than a bureaucratic shuffle. She frames it as an ideological attack on public education itself, undermining the idea that every child, regardless of family wealth or background, deserves access to a first-class education.

At the same time, Department officials defend the changes. A spokesperson described Warren’s op-ed as a “tirade,” and insisted that the agency’s intention is simply to “fix the mess,” even if that means defying conventional norms.

Warren’s call for McMahon to resign reflects deep concern over what the reform could mean for millions of American students, especially those from underserved or disadvantaged backgrounds. The debate over dismantling federal education infrastructure appears only to deepen.