The U.S. Department of Education will cut half its staff under newly confirmed Secretary Linda McMahon to position the agency for possible closure. Officials said 1,315 employees will be laid off, the Washington Post reported. The department's head count will plummet from its previous 4,100 employees.

U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon said cutting the department's workforce nearly in half is a first step toward eliminating it.

The Trump administration cut about half the work force of the agency, saying the move would enable it to deliver services more effectively. The attorneys general called the move “reckless and illegal.

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