LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday afternoon which triggered the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education, and Michigan lawmakers are weighing in.

Rep. Walberg weighs in.

Congressman Tim Walberg (R-Michigan), who serves as chair of the Committee on Education and Workforce, sat in the room as Trump signed the executive order. He appeared on The Steve Gruber Show on Friday and called the move “an exciting start.”

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“We finally have a president that recognized the fact that after 40 years of the Department of Education and $30 trillion spent that nothing good has come from it,” Rep. Walberg said. “That probably means look at something different.”

Rep. Walberg also acknowledged that the dismantling will be a process. He said that those worried about what gaps the dismantling may create will be absorbed by other departments. For instance, school loan and per pupil funding can be shifted to the Treasury, and civil rights violations can fall under the Justice Department.

Michigan lawmakers speak out.

Meanwhile in Michigan, lawmakers passed House Resolution 55 which shows its support for ending the Department of Education’s overreach. In addition, the resolution encourages Congress to work with the administration to return control to the states.

Rep. Angela Rigas (R-Caledonia) voted for the resolution. “We’re sick and tired of pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into this department, and we’ve only seen our test scores decline,” she said. “The department spent $268 billion last year, and to what end? Overseeing the education of our children is a state’s right, and the states spoke their mind when we elected President Trump and Republicans in a landslide last November.”

Her colleague, Rep. Ken Borton (R-Gaylord) pushed back on opponents trying to paint the move in a bad light. “Anyone trying to say that President Trump or Michigan Republicans are trying to cut services for special education or low-income students is flat-out lying,” Borton said. “By returning education authority to the states, we’re cutting out unnecessary bureaucracy and equipping experts at the state level to make decisions that best suit kids under their watch.”