In 2023, Joe Biden’s Education Secretary Miguel Cardona botched one of Ronald Reagan’s most famous quotes: “As . . . President Reagan said, ‘We’re from the government. We’re here to help,’” Cardona bragged.
Context matters, buddy. What President Reagan actually said was, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the Government, and I’m here to help.”
As always, Reagan was prescient. Despite many decades of “help” from bureaucrats like Cardona, American education is in serious decline.
Since 2000, the Department of Indoctrination has overseen the collapse of civic literacy, reading, and math scores among American students. And yet, according to a new report from OpenTheBooks, the agency’s spending increased by over 700%.
Across multiple topics and grades, students’ test scores have plummeted since the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, in 2013, 78% of 8th-graders scored at least “basic” on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading test. In 2024, that number fell to 67%.
Studies show that “only 30% of eighth graders are capable of reading independently at grade level. The percentage of 13-year-olds who report reading for fun 'almost every day' is only 14%, cut in half in a decade. And in 2022, only 11% of high school seniors said they read at least six books for fun in the past year.”
Amazingly, OpenTheBooks reported the Education Department’s employment “actually decreased since 2000, by 13.9%. But spending? It rose an astonishing 749%.”
In other words, even when the government shrinks, it continues to grow.
“In many federal agencies, spending has outpaced not just inflation but also growing headcounts — often many times over,” observed OpenTheBooks CEO John Hart. “This begs an important question: Where is the money going?”
The same trend was evident across other infamous government departments, including the National Institutes of Health (301% increased spending), Agency for International Development (467.7%), and FEMA (2,096%)!
“If the excessive waste and fraud we’ve uncovered over the years — and DOGE is highlighting — is any guide, taxpayers may be better served by far fewer than 441 agencies, including the ones that are defunct,” Mr. Hart added.
Any government agency that takes 749% more of our money while continuing to fail us certainly warrants a closer look from DOGE. Ultimately, however, it’s up to the states to check and balance the power of the federal government. With an Article V convention, we can propose amendments to permanently limit federal spending, power, and terms of office and keep government “help” to a minimum.
Sign the COS petition below to show your support!
Watchdog reveals shocking Department of Indoctrination spending boost
Published in Blog on February 20, 2025 by Jakob Fay
