Democrats Argue Sec. McMahon Ignores Inspector General

Education Secretary Linda McMahon is accused by leading Democrats of slow-walking requests for information about department downsizing from the Office of Inspector General (OIG).

The complaint surfaced in a letter sent to McMahon by Democrats, as reported by ABC. The letter pointed out the OIG has a right to answers about the efforts of President Donald Trump to restructure the department.

"We urge the Department to immediately meet its obligation under the law to fully comply with the OIG's review," the representatives wrote. "Congress and the public need to understand the full extent and impact of the Administration's actions on the Department and the students, families, and educational communities it may no longer be able to serve."

In a recent department press release, McMahon addressed the foundational changes taking place, including a reference to the administration's fiscal year 2026 "Skinny Budget."
The plan, said McMahon, "saves billions in taxpayer dollars from going to duplicative, unaligned, or non-essential programs."

She defended the restructuring of the department due to poor management: "The federal government has invested trillions of taxpayer dollars into an education system that is not driving improved student outcomes – we must change course and reorient taxpayer dollars toward proven programs that generate results for American students."

ABC reported that an OIG communication claimed McMahon had engineered non-compliance with requests for information, including "timely access to all records, reports, audits, reviews, documents, papers, recommendations, or other materials available to the department."

During a Tuesday Senate budget hearing, McMahon defended the administration's downsizing of the department, including large-scale employee layoffs in March. She also defended the administration's efforts to eliminate antisemitic events at colleges and universities.

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