Linda McMahon presents the Department of Education a WWE-style 'SmackDown'

Linda McMahon, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Education, will face the unusual task of working to eliminate her own position. Trump has promised to eliminate the department entirely, aiming to fulfill a decades-long conservative dream.

The co-chair of the Trump transition team, McMahon has also served as chairwoman of the board for America First Policy Institute and notably co-founded World Wrestling Entertainment with her husband, Vince McMahon. During the first Trump administration, she led the Small Business Administration.

“Linda will use her decades of Leadership experience, and deep understanding of both Education and Business, to empower the next Generation of American Students and Workers, and make America Number One in Education in the World,” Trump declared. “We will send Education BACK TO THE STATES, and Linda will spearhead that effort.”

Her appointment drew acclaim from conservative parental rights activists, such as Moms for Liberty Co-Founder Tiffany Justice, who said “She understands the assignment.”

McMahon herself has made little in the way of public comment since Trump announced her appointment. Her most recent public post on X celebrates the success of apprenticeship programs in Switzerland and suggests the Alpine nation could serve as a model for the U.S.

McMahon was reportedly hoping to lead the Commerce Department, meaning she will need to pivot mentally, at least to some degree. Trump specifically highlighted her experience on the Connecticut Board of Education and her advocacy for school choice. But her education policy experience will likely take a backseat to her administrative skills as much of the department’s work involves the allocation of federal funding and the oversight of federal student loan programs.

Though Trump has promised to dismantle the DOE, McMahon will face the difficult task of downsizing the department in anticipation of its abolition, while still wielding its authority as an executive agency to advance key Trump administration initiatives. 

A daunting task

With much of the DOE’s focus being on the finance of education, McMahon should feel right at home managing disbursements and tackling other administrative tasks. But its chief duties have been the subject of intense legal scrutiny in light of White House initiatives under the current administration.

The Supreme Court struck down President Joe Biden’s initial debt cancellation plan last year, which led to the DOE’s creation of the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan and a litany of other, smaller contingency debt cancellation efforts. Most of them have been subject to further legal scrutiny and it will likely fall to McMahon to stabilize repayment of the roughly $1.5 trillion in student debt the DOE manages. 

The extent to which she will work with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Trump’s newly-created organization for downsizing the federal government, remains unclear. It is likely, however, that McMahon will enjoy a close relationship with DOGE co-chairs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy as she works to downsize and ultimately eliminate her own department.

Opposing goals?

Despite promising to eliminate the department, Trump has also indicated he would use its authority to enact other policy positions beforehand and to upend existent practices. In an Agenda 47 policy video last year, Trump vowed to use the DOE to open civil rights investigations into school districts engaged in race-based discrimination, including those against Asian Americans. 

He also promised to root out radicals within the DOE and to pursue congressional support for their termination. The Trump agenda further calls for pulling funding from schools that support Critical Race Theory (CRT), Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI), gender ideology, and other divisive concepts. Federal funding comprises approximately 14% of public school budgets, according to the Associated Press. Trump further hopes to provide preferential funding to school districts that reduce their administrative headcount, abolish teacher tenure, institute merit pay, and adopt parental bills of rights.

McMahon will face the additional task of protecting the rights of parents who seek to homeschool their children. Trump himself has promised to allow homeschooling parents to use 529 education savings accounts to spend up to $10,000 per child each year tax-free for that purpose.

While it may ultimately fall outside the DOE purview, the president-elect recently announced the creation of an “American Academy,” to provide a library of educational content devoid of political influence. The institution would derive its funding from the taxation of private university endowments and provide government-recognized credentials equivalent to a bachelor’s degree.