A video of 2024 Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump went viral on Sept. 23, 2024, in which he stated: "I'm gonna close the Department of Education and move education back to the states." One X account – Kamala's Wins – posted the video (archived here) and received more than 1.7 million views and 25,000 likes, as of this writing.
X users hashed it out in the comments; some defended the right of states over education – "I CANNOT FIND anywhere in the Constitution where the Federal Government is empowered to meddle in our education," one wrote, while others saw the proposal as a step backward. "Education is vital for our children's future and the nation's progress," another wrote. "We need leaders who prioritize learning, not undermine it."
First off, the video is authentic. It's publicly available on C-SPAN at minute 58:00. The video depicts Trump speaking to a crowd on the campaign trail in Indiana, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 23, 2024.
This is not the first time Trump has discussed closing the Department of Education, which is one of the proposals listed in Project 2025, a blueprint for a conservative U.S. presidency. While speaking on Fox News in June 2024, he said: "We're going to cut the Department of Education, let it be run locally." During his August 2024 streamed conversation with X owner Elon Musk, he said: "I want to close the Department of Education."
Project 2025 – which we've provided in-depth analysis on – states on its official website:
Shut Down the Department of Education: TRUE
Project 2025's Mandate for Leadership calls for the end of the Department of Education. Since the Department was created, educational outcomes have not improved, and the American school system has increasingly fallen behind other countries. Giving more control back to state and local governments, and expanding school choice, would improve education outcomes for all Americans, especially underprivileged communities. Some functions of the Department of Education would be moved to other departments including Labor, Justice, and Commerce.
In sum, because Trump did say: "I'm gonna close the Department of Education and move education back to the states" during a filmed rally speech, we rate this claim as a correct attribution.