The re-election of former President Donald Trump is certain to bring a period of conflict,tension and litigation between his White House and California’s political and education leaders whose policies and values the president-elect castigates. It also could potentially have major implications for California schools.Trump, whose position on education has focused more on cultural ideology than on policies to improve education, has threatened to cut school funding to states, such as California, that protect transgender students and promote diversity, equity and inclusion programs in their schools. He also has pledged to deport undocumented immigrants in record numbers, a move that would impact millions of California families and their children. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has been a formidable foil to Trump in the past, has not released a comment on the former president's election. An Oct. 18 tweet by Newsom foreshadows the coming tensions between the president-elect and a leading progressive governor and self-appointed provocateur from the nation’s largest and, by some measures, bluest state. Michael Kirst, former president of the State Board of Education, chief adviser to former Gov. Jerry Brown, and Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) co-founder and advisor, said there is a contradiction in what Trump proposes and in federal education policy. “He says he wants to turn control back to locals, but his campaign platform and statements indicate a deep interest in getting involved in local decision-making: having parents elect principals, cutting back teacher tenure and instituting merit pay,” Kirst said. “He wants to examine the curriculum of schools for ‘woke’ ideology.” The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the primary law governing federal education policy, limits federal involvement in education, Kirst said. ESSA bans federal intervention in setting curriculum and federal involvement with teacher evaluations, which will affect Trump’s plan to offer merit pay.  “Some of his aides talk about slashing K-12 spending, but who knows what will happen?” Kirst said. Congress could transfer some funding for schools to create incentives for school choice, but that would require changes in school law, he said.