Two new press releases, one from New Jersey Democratic State Committee Chairman Leroy J. Jones, Jr. and the other from from Attorney General Matthew Platkin, express outrage at President Trump’s Executive Order to dismantle the federal Education Department:

Chairman Jones: President Trump’s Executive Order dismantling the Department of Education is callous and cruel. The fact that the President of the United States can take his pen and with one swipe erase school funding for millions of students is nothing short of vindictive. Vital resources that go to K-12 students — mostly low-income students and students with disabilities — are now simply gone because the President of the United States wants to wage war on our families, our teachers. and our public education system.

And what is most appalling to me, as a father and grandfather, is that our Republican Party here in New Jersey is cheering this on. They refuse to stand up for New Jersey families and educators. They refuse to stand up for what is right. And I hope every voter remembers this day come November when they have to make a choice for Governor: The Republican Party deserted you today, and you should remember it.”

AG Platkin: Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today joined a coalition of 21 attorneys general in filing a motion for a preliminary injunction as part of their lawsuit to stop the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education.

On March 13, Attorney General Platkin and the coalition filed their lawsuit after the Trump Administration announced plans to eliminate 50 percent of the Department’s workforce. Following a March 20 Executive Order directing the closure of the U.S. Department of Education and President Trump’s March 21 announcement that the Department must “immediately” transfer student loan management and special education services outside of the Department, Attorney General Platkin and the coalition are seeking a court order to immediately stop the mass layoffs and transfer of services.

“Shuttering the Department of Education will result in extraordinary harm to students, teachers, and families in our state,” said Attorney General Platkin. “President Trump cannot unilaterally eliminate a Cabinet agency, and our motion today seeks to put an immediate end to this clear violation of the law. While this Administration may be fine with gutting services for special needs students, slashing critical programs, and hurting college students, we will never be. We will continue to stand up for our state’s students, teachers, and families.”

As Attorney General Platkin and the coalition assert, the Trump Administration’s attacks on the U.S. Department of Education have already had serious consequences for families and students throughout the country. Mass layoffs of Department staff have led to the closure of the Department’s Office of Civil Rights locations throughout the country. Critical funding for state school systems has also been delayed. As the attorneys general argue, states rely on billions of dollars every year in funding for elementary and secondary education, services for children with disabilities, vocational education, adult education, and other crucial services. All of these programs will be severely disrupted if the administration’s incapacitation of the Department is not stopped.

Attorney General Platkin and the coalition argue in their lawsuit and motion for a preliminary injunction that the Trump Administration’s attacks on the U.S. Department of Education are illegal and unconstitutional. The Department is an executive agency authorized by Congress, with statutes creating its various programs and funding streams. The coalition’s lawsuit asserts that the Executive Branch does not have the legal authority to unilaterally dismantle it without an act of Congress. In addition, the attorneys general argue that the U.S. Department of Education’s mass layoffs violate the Administrative Procedure Act.

Joining Attorney General Platkin in filing the lawsuit and today’s motion are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.