President Bush wants to fashion several new education programs, including pricey items central to his oft-touted high school agenda. But he also is proposing for the first time since he entered the White House to cut the overall budget of the U.S. Department of Education. And he's asking Congress to give up a lot--48 line items, to be exact. The Education Department was one of numerous federal agencies whose budgets were slated for cuts in the budget request that President Bush forwarded to Capitol Hill on February 7. The White House has emphasized that the $2.5 trillion budget package comes in tight fiscal times, as the war in Iraq, homeland security issues, and the president's stated intention to gradually decrease budget deficits make trade-offs necessary. One of the most controversial targets in the plan is vocational and technical education. Mr. Bush wants to redirect the $1.3 billion currently spent on those activities to his new High School Intervention program. The Education Department notes in its detailed budget proposal that the vocational state grants, which account for most of that money, have been rated "ineffective" by the White House Office of Management and Budget for having "produced little or no evidence of improved outcomes for students despite decades of federal investment." The new high school program, the Education Department says, would support targeted interventions that raise the achievement of high schoolers, especially those at risk of not meeting state standards. States could still choose to fund vocational programs with that money, though vocational education advocates argue that support for their programs would likely get squeezed out. Hanging the high school plans on cuts elsewhere may be risky.