Good morning. A federal judge threatened to open a contempt investigation into whether the Trump administration violated his order to stop some deportation flights. A Sudanese paramilitary group declared a parallel government. And astronomers have detected a possible sign of life on a distant planet. More news is below. But first, our colleague Dana Goldstein explains Trump's threats against K-12 schools.
Classroom control
Harvard might be the most famous educational institution opposing President Trump's threats of funding cuts and a federal takeover, but it's not the only one. Another legal battle is brewing that affects a far different, and far larger, group of students. The Trump administration is threatening to withhold billions of federal dollars from public schools that serve low-income children, unless they sign documents attesting that they do not use "illegal D.E.I. practices." Those funds pay for, among other things, teachers' aides, counselors and free meals. The threats may not have much of an effect in Republican-led states, many of which already have anti-D.E.I. laws on the books. But many schools in Democratic-led states have programs and policies regarding race and gender that Trump considers illegal. Last week, the administration announced that it was moving to cancel federal funding to all schools in Maine because of its rules regarding transgender athletes. It has threatened to do the same in California because of the state's policies around parental notification and transgender students. Education officials in about a dozen states, mostly liberal, have refused to adopt Trump's directives. And advocacy groups like the A.C.L.U. and the N.A.A.C.P. have filed lawsuits challenging the threatened cuts. One of those is set to go before a federal judge in New Hampshire today. In today's newsletter, I'll explain why the president is taking on K-12 education, and how officials are responding. What Trump believes
The Trump administration has set out its case in a series of executive orders and memos. It believes that when schools allow transgender students to play on the sports teams or use the bathrooms of their choice, they are violating the rights of girls under Title IX. And it believes that D.E.I. programs violate the Civil Rights Act, which prevents discrimination based on race, color or national origin. The administration has not offered a detailed definition of D.E.I. But it has argued that programs that separate students by race in order to provide targeted support are a form of illegal segregation. That could include mentoring programs intended to raise graduation rates for Black boys, or tutoring to increase Black and Hispanic students' enrollment in advanced courses. The Trump administration has also argued that teaching about concepts like white privilege is discriminatory toward white students. Those concepts, however, are central to ethnic studies courses, which are increasingly common in K-12 schools in liberal states. In some states, including California, agreeing to Trump's demands would put school districts in violation of state laws that lay out the curriculum and prescribe the ways schools must handle issues of race and gender. The local control paradox
And here lies a major paradox: For decades, many liberals have argued that the federal government should play a bigger role in K-12 education. They have called for national curriculum standards and greater financial support. Conservatives, including Trump, have often said that the federal government should allow states to chart their own educational paths. Now, however, the American tradition of local control of schools is what allows liberal states and districts to push back against a more muscular federal approach. In the case that will be heard today in New Hampshire, the nation's largest teachers' union and the A.C.L.U. will argue that Trump's threat to withhold funding violates congressional regulations that prohibit the federal government from exercising control over local curriculum and instruction. The plaintiffs will also argue that the administration's ban on D.E.I. in education is unconstitutionally vague and presents a threat to students' and teachers' free speech rights. The government will respond that the 2023 ban on affirmative action in college admissions set a precedent for ending all school programs that favor one racial group over another, even in K-12 education. This dispute may ultimately reach the Supreme Court. Have questions about Trump's funding cuts? Ask us here. We will respond to some questions in an upcoming newsletter. For more: The I.R.S. is considering whether to revoke Harvard's tax-exempt status.
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