Discussing the subject of education Thomas Jefferson said: “I know of no sure repository of the ultimate powers of society but the people themselves; and if we deem them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with healthy discretion, the remedy is not to take it away from them but to inform their discretion. (Encyclopedia Britannica, 1976). The education of America's future generations was a topic of discussion during the nation's founding. President Jefferson, like many founders, politicians, and scholars, emphasized the importance of educating people. Knowledge was an important factor in a healthy Republic. Recent politicians have taken a stand against the Department of Education. Considering the importance of education, why would anyone take a stand against education? The current position is not against education but is instead against the Department of Education. The founders did not envision education being controlled by the federal government; instead they proclaimed support for state education with federal assistance. More than two hundred years passed without an American Department of Education, because people feared government interference in education. These fears are coming to fruition. Today, the U.S. Department of Education is a bureaucratic nightmare. The department continues to grow in both size and cost, with little progress shown. The American people fear that their children will not receive a proper education without the department. This fear is propagated by the department itself. After all, they have to earn a living. At least two different federal education plans have been developed since the department began operations. Therefore, the Department of Education should be abolished because the American people did not… a paper… charged in 1981 with collecting information and monitoring the state of education. The commission was to prepare a report for the Secretary of Education and the President within 18 months. Studies had shown that American students scored lower on tests than their counterparts in other nations, including Japan, South Korea, and Germany (The National Commission of Excellence in Education, 1983). This fear was the driving force behind the commissioning. The commission produced A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform in April 1983 within the prescribed deadline. The commission declared that American education had been in decline since the Soviets launched Sputnik. During that time period illiteracy had increased and average test scores had decreased. American industry was losing ground to Japan in automobiles, South Korea in steel, and Germany in machine tools.