McMahon lays out Education Department ‘final mission’ to House appropriators

Education Secretary Linda McMahon on Wednesday defended the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to her agency as part of an overall effort to shutter her department — a goal she described as its “final mission.”

Testifying before the House Appropriations Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee, McMahon offered sparse details when pressed about cuts that have already been implemented, as well as the Trump administration’s so-called “skinny” budget request for fiscal 2026.

That request includes about $12 billion in cuts to federal education spending — about a 15 percent decrease from fiscal 2025.