Unfortunately, we cannot discuss eliminating the department because the suggestion elicits claims of doom: Kill the department and threaten education itself.

That said, Washington has leveraged those relatively small funds to take control of education. The No Child Left Behind Act, operative from 2002 to 2015, forced states to have uniform standards and tests in math and reading and punished schools that failed to make “adequate yearly progress” toward full proficiency in those subjects.

The presidential election has brought back a topic that always seems to need more momentum to succeed, but always has enough support to stick around: ending the Department of Education.