Latest news with #CongressionalResearchReport
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
JD Vance picks new fight with Supreme Court over its power to check the president: ‘Profoundly wrong'
Vice President JD Vance pushed back on Chief Justice John Roberts's assertion that courts have the authority to 'check the excesses' of the executive branch, saying the statement was 'profoundly wrong.' Amid a battle between the Trump administration and the federal judiciary over several of President Donald Trump's executive orders and decisions, Vance placed blame on courts for wrongly interpreting the Constitution and getting in the way of Trump's agenda. 'I saw an interview with Chief Justice Roberts recently where he said the role of the court is to check the excesses of the executive. I thought that was a profoundly wrong sentiment,' Vance said in a New York Times opinion interview. Earlier this month, Roberts said in an interview that the judiciary requires some independence from other branches of government in order to successfully interpret the Constitution and 'strike down' acts of Congress or the executive branch that they deem excessive. 'That's one-half of his job,' Vance said. 'The other half of his job is to check the excesses of his own branch. You cannot have a country where the American people keep on electing immigration enforcement and the courts tell the American people they're not allowed to have what they voted for.' Members of the Trump administration have repeatedly said that they believe the president has unconditional authority to carry out whatever agenda they desire because the president was voted on by the people. However, the framers of the Constitution made it so that no one branch of government could be more powerful than another in a system called 'checks and balances.' While the president may nominate Supreme Court justices, the Senate confirms the nominations. In turn, the Supreme Court can overturn laws or executive actions that it finds unconstitutional. So far, at least 25 federal courts have placed nationwide injunctions on the Trump administration within the first 100 days in office, a Congressional Research Report found. But Vance interpreted any 'checks' that federal courts have made on the Trump administration's recent actions as 'an effort by the courts to quite literally overturn the will of the American people.' The vice president said the administration plans to continue working through courts, all the way to the Supreme Court, until they determine a set of laws that will allow Trump to specifically carry out his mass deportation agenda, which has been subject to many injunctions. But until that occurs, the administration appears to be taking court injunctions lightly, with some accusing the president of defying court orders. The Supreme Court said the administration should 'facilitate' the return of a Salvadoran man with legal status in the U.S. who says he was wrongly deported. The administration has not done so. On Wednesday, a federal judge said the administration had violated a court order when it deported a group of immigrants to South Sudan, where a humanitarian crisis is ongoing. In cases where judges have ruled against the administration, Trump and his allies have railed against the judges, claiming they should be impeached or that they're decisions were politically motivated. In March, Roberts issued a statement refuting calls for impeachment against a judge who ordered Trump to turn around a deportation flight carrying Venezuelan immigrants, accused of being gang members.
Yahoo
08-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
How much does the Department of Education fund California schools?
President Donald Trump's plans to defund or abolish the U.S. Department of Education have prompted questions about the department's role in America. But how much money does California get from the U.S. Department of Education to help fund schools? About 10-20% in the past few years, according to the Public Policy Institute of California, but in pre-pandemic years, that number was about 5%. In America, K-12 education funding is 'shared between federal, state and local governments, with state and local governments providing the largest portions,' according to Everything Policy, which researches and publishes information about policy. In California, the state share of funding the K-12 system has 'largely hovered around 55% to 60%' since 1990, with the local share usually near 30%, according to the Public Policy Institute of California, although the state's funding share has risen in the past several years. Read more: What will happen to California schools if Trump closes the Department of Education? California's 2024-25 state budget included a total funding of $133.8 billion — with more than half from the general fund — for all K-12 education programs. Federal dollars support K-12 education in California, particularly aiding disadvantaged students and students with disabilities. Among the Department of Education's many roles include distributing funds. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, particularly its Title 1-A program, which authorizes aid to disadvantaged students, is the 'primary source of federal aid to elementary and secondary education,' according to a Congressional Research Report. It is the largest pool of funds under ESEA, also known for its most recently reauthorized form, the Every Student Succeeds Act. The Department of Education determines and allocates Title I funds nationwide to support local educational agencies, such as school districts. In California, Title I, Part A funds are 'used to support effective, evidence-based educational strategies that close the achievement gap' and help students meet the state's academic standards, according to the California Department of Education. Broadly speaking, these funds help students in high-poverty areas, according to the National Education Association. California received $2.4 billion in Title 1, Part A funds for the 2024-25 fiscal year, according to Scott Roark, a public information officer with the California Department of Education, in an email to The Desert Sun. The Department of Education also allocates funds to pay the costs of developing and administering state assessments through Title I, Part B, according to the National Education Association. California received $27 million in Title I, Part B funds for the 2024-25 year, according to Roark. Other federal funding that targets English-language learners and support teachers in California is allocated by the Department of Education, and title funds established through the ESEA. Also, a Department of Education office administers the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the 'main federal statute governing special education and early intervention services for children with disabilities,' according to the Congressional Research Service. The primary purpose of IDEA is to ensure that every child with a disability is provided a "free appropriate public education," and it also supplements state and local funding to pay for additional or excess costs of educating children with disabilities, according to the Congressional Research Service. California received $1.5 billion in special education funding through IDEA for the fiscal year 2024-25, Roark said. This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Here's how much the Department of Education funds California schools
