Voice of America (U.S. Agency for Global Media), Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Institute of Museum and Library Services, U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, Minority Business Development Agency.

Warning:  This Post is My Opinion, Based in Fact and Experience

Everyone who reads this blog is aware that President Trump and Elon Musk are busy downsizing the government.  What that looks like and how that affects us is less easy to grasp and recognize until we come face to face with the ways these actions are being done.

Although the majority of readers of this blog know Mr. Musk's background.  Let me refresh your memory with just a few facts:

And so, here we are.  He has plans to "do away with" the Department of Education. It isn't like we weren't warned.  He said he was going to do it, and now he's looking for a way to fulfill his promise to the American people to "downsize the government" and save the people a gazillion dollars.  Since we all know education is, essentially, a state responsibility why not?  Let me tell you why not. Please bear with this veteran educator of over 50 years as I share the story of why the Dept. of Ed. came about and what the demise will (not may) mean to you.

As always I beg you to read the executive order and refer to it multiple times while reading this blog so you can better understand what is or is not going to change for individuals in this country as a result of the Executive Order.  (https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/defending-women-from-gender-ideology-extremism-and-restoring-biological-truth-to-the-federal-government/)

I'd like to try my best to explain what people are being singled out for deportation by ICE agents across the United States.  In order to do this we have to distinguish what is a legal immigrant and who is not legal.  Legal immigrants are foreign-born people legally admitted to the U.S. Undocumented immigrants, also called illegal aliens, are foreign-born people who do not possess a valid visa or other immigration documentation, because they entered the U.S. without inspection, stayed longer than their temporary visa permitted, or otherwise violated the terms under which they were admitted. (https://www.dshs.wa.gov/faq/what%E2%80%99s-difference-between-legal-and-undocumented-immigrants)

As of this writing a federal judge has halted the executive order to suspending payments to programs of federal grants and loans.  This morning when the news came out many of us were just blown away.  We didn't know what it meant because there was no clarity regarding which programs would have funding suspended. There was a lot of speculation that medicare, medicaid and other payments would be delayed until at least February  10.  Let me explain how I see this at 5:32 pm, central time on January 28, 2025.  Remember things can change on a minutes notice.