What did Donald Trump do today?

He tried to kill Head Start by attrition.

Head Start is a federal program that provides early childhood education, nutritional support, and health screenings for children in very low-income families. More than 40 million American children have been helped by it since its founding in 1965. 

 

Salaries for Head Start teachers had gradually fallen well below those of other public school teachers. As a result, many of them were forced to leave for better paying jobs outside of education altogether, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic. In order to undo that drain, in 2023, the Biden administration issued a rule requiring that they be brought back into parity with other local teacher salaries.

Today, the Trump administration announced today that it was repealing that rule. Trump has always been hostile to Head Start: his administration proposed killing the program off entirely last year, and has tried to cancel its health screenings and parental support programs too. This appears to be an attempt to shut it down by other means, as local chapters close their doors for lack of staff. 

The announcement comes just days after Trump said he would try to slash food assistance for the poorest Americans. That group, defined as households with income 130% of less of the federal poverty level would include a fully qualified classroom teacher making the median Head Start salary in Mississippi: $26,964.
 

Why does this matter?

• American children deserve access to good education, health care, and other vital services even if they didn't inherit a business empire worth billions of dollars.