President made campaign promise to axe the department – but needs congressional approval to follow through

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Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order on Thursday that instructs the US education secretary, Linda McMahon, to start dismantling the agency, seemingly attempting to circumvent the need to obtain the congressional approval needed to formally close a federal department.

The order – which has been anticipated for weeks given Trump campaigned on a promise to end the education department – directs McMahon to “take all necessary steps” shut down key functionalities “and return education authority to the states”.