The Department of Education has announced plans to fire an additional 1,300 employees, effectively cutting the agency’s workforce in half since Trump took office. Newly confirmed Education Secretary Linda McMahon — the billionaire former professional wrestling promoter — says the cuts show her commitment to “efficiency” and “accountability.” The teachers’ union the National Education Association condemned the cuts, writing in a statement, “Gutting the Department of Education will send class sizes soaring, cut job training programs, make higher education more expensive and out of reach for middle-class families, take away special education services for students with disabilities, and gut student civil rights protections.”