Sen. Cassidy to Newsmax: DOJ to Oversee Civil Rights for Jewish Students

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said Wednesday on Newsmax that the Department of Justice will take over civil rights enforcement for Jewish students on college campuses, citing concerns about delays and staffing at the Department of Education.

Cassidy announced on "American Agenda" that the Department of Justice will assume responsibility for civil rights protections for Jewish students, shifting oversight from the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights.

The chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee addressed concerns about how Jewish students would be protected in light of resource challenges within the Department of Education.

"So, first, the responsibilities for protecting the Jewish students, the Office of Civil Rights will move to the Department of Justice," Cassidy said. "They already have an Office of Civil Rights, completely staffed up."

He said this move addresses what he described as one of the Department of Education's justifications for inaction: a lack of sufficient resources.

"One of the complaints of the people — or one of the excuses of the people — in the Department of Education as to why they did not investigate is that they did not have adequate resources," he said. "Moving this function to the Department of Justice arguably will increase their resources."

Cassidy's remarks follow the January reintroduction of the "Protecting Students on Campus Act," a bipartisan bill he co-sponsored with Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa. The legislation will allow students to file civil rights complaints if they experience violence or harassment on college campuses due to their heritage. The senators initially introduced the bill in response to a rise in antisemitic incidents following Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

The Louisiana senator also commented on broader discussions surrounding the future of the Department of Education, cautioning that any attempts to eliminate it must go through Congress.

"My concern about the ending of the Department of Education was not on that issue," Cassidy said, "but rather that it was created by an act of Congress. The president cannot eliminate the Department of Education by an executive order. It must be done by congressional action."

Cassidy added that he is working with a Senate colleague and Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon on a strategy for such congressional action.

"By the way, Ronald Reagan in 1980 said he wanted to end the Department of Education," Cassidy said. "A tip of the hat to [President] Donald Trump, hopefully completing that which Ronald Reagan first proposed."

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