This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.Welcome to The Logoff. Today Im focusing on the Trump administrations move to cut the Department of Educations staff by half. Before we dive in, a request: If youre enjoying The Logoff, please consider forwarding it to a friend (or text them this sign-up link: https://voxdotcom.visitlink.me/MFBxDE.) I really appreciate it.Whats the latest? The administration Tuesday night laid off 1,315 Education Department workers. The cuts, combined with previous staff reductions, mean the agency will be about half the size it was when Donald Trump took office seven weeks ago.What does the Education Department do? Among many tasks, the department is responsible for:Distributing billions of dollars of federal funding to schools and school districtsInvestigating violations of students civil rights Managing the $1.5 trillion student loan portfolioCollecting crucial research data about students and schools to inform policymakingWill it keep doing all of that? The administration defended the cuts by saying theyd improve efficiency and keep the organization focused on its core missions. Critics say thats simply not possible at the new staff level: some or all of its functions will suffer. Whats (possibly) next? Multiple outlets have reported that Trump was planning to try to close the department by executive order. Its not clear if these cuts replaced that move, or if theres more to come. But Trump would need Congress to eliminate the department entirely, and he doesnt have the 60 Senate votes hed need to do it.Whats the big picture? Conservatives have long had a vendetta against the Education Department. Gutting it wont affect what schools teach thats controlled at the state and local level but, through understaffing, Trump can make it difficult for the department to enforce laws and help schools, districts, and anyone with a student loan. The consequences may be quiet, but they could be enormous.And with that, its time to log off...A confession: I know that I really need to learn more about artificial intelligence, but I sometimes feel like Im so far behind in the conversation that I avoid it entirely. Thats why Im so excited about Voxs new podcast series, Good Robot, which both provides a great introduction to the topic and dives into the big questions that surround it (starting with: Is AI going to mean humanitys end?). The first episode came out today (available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and elsewhere), and I hope youll get to enjoy it. Thanks so much for reading, and Ill see you back here tomorrow.See More: