The entry of the federal government into the student loan business has massively, criminally driven up the cost of college over the last few decades. But not every student needs to go to a four-year college, and not every college needs to charge $70,000 a year; we have to begin to reel it all back in and ask tough questions related to what the value of a college degree truly is and why the federal government is backing this.

Nor does the Education Department track student achievement very well—if it had, it would have realized the reading crisis the nation’s grade schools have been enduring at the hands of Lucy Calkins and the many school districts that have shifted away from phonics instruction. (And did the department handle the tracking of COVID spread in schools, to see whether/how schools could safely reopen? No, that was Brown economist Emily Oster.)

And enforcing civil rights laws? Do you mean campus kangaroo courts that routinely violated due process for students accused of sexual misdeeds?

“The Education Department’s budget has ballooned from $14 billion to around $100 billion.…Similar increases have occurred at the state and local levels, which provide over 90 percent of K-12 funding,” writes Veronique de Rugy. “In 1980, total per-pupil spending (from local, state, and federal sources) was around $9,000 in today’s dollars. Today that figure is $17,277, with $2,400 coming from federal funding. The biggest question, of course, is what the investment is delivering. The department was originally created to raise educational standards, promote equity, and improve national competitiveness. After all that time and money, have we seen much progress? Not really.”

“Functional illiteracy rates, for example, have not changed much since 1979 and remain as high as 20 percent by some measures,” continues de Rugy. “Since the late 1970s, eighth grade reading and math scores have remained virtually unchanged, showing no meaningful progress. High school seniors’ math scores have barely improved.” What exactly are we getting for all this investment?

“Calls to abolish the department aren’t nearly as radical or threatening as much of the media coverage suggests,” wrote Frederick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute back in January. “The Department of Education doesn’t educate anyone or run any schools or colleges. It’s a collection of 4,000 bureaucrats who mostly manage student loans, write rules, oversee various grant programs, and generate paperwork.” It’s not like such functions were ever constitutionally authorized or added any practical value. If Trump can scrap it, more power to him!

Scenes from New York: Our handsy Italian (but I repeat myself!) has announced that, following his defeat in the Democratic primary for mayor, he will simply not accept no for an answer (when has he ever?) and will instead enter the race as an independent.