Democrats Call Out Top Trump Official
More than seventy House Democrats have sent a formal letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon, demanding explanations over a growing backlog of civil rights complaints at the U.S. Department of Education.
The letter, led by Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, raises concerns about staffing changes at the Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) that occurred after Donald Trump returned to office. According to lawmakers, the department entered 2025 with more than 22,000 unresolved civil rights complaints filed during the previous year.
Bonamici publicly criticized the staffing decisions in a social media post on Monday, claiming hundreds of OCR attorneys and support staff were dismissed, contributing to significant processing delays. She said she and her colleagues are now pressing the department for answers.
The Office for Civil Rights is responsible for enforcing federal civil rights laws in schools and colleges nationwide. Its mission includes reviewing complaints related to discrimination and harassment to ensure students have access to safe learning environments. Democrats argue that staffing reductions have slowed investigations and left thousands of families waiting for resolution.
According to the letter, reports indicate that hundreds of OCR employees were initially laid off and later rehired on a temporary basis to manage a workload that has reportedly grown to approximately 25,000 pending complaints and more than 7,000 open investigations.
Lawmakers cited one stalled case involving allegations of racial harassment at a Texas middle school. The investigation reportedly involves claims that Black students were subjected to racial slurs and other inappropriate conduct, though the case has not yet been resolved.
The letter further claims that since President Trump took office, the Department of Education has not completed a single racial discrimination or harassment investigation — an allegation that is likely to intensify debate over staffing levels, administrative priorities, and federal oversight.
Democrats are now demanding detailed information from Secretary McMahon, including the total number of active complaints, the types of cases under review, the standards used to determine discrimination, and how many employees are currently assigned to handle the caseload.
The dispute underscores broader disagreements in Washington over government efficiency, staffing decisions, and how federal agencies should balance enforcement responsibilities with fiscal discipline — issues that continue to shape the national conversation on education policy and accountability.
