Peroutka said he would actively work to dismantle certain parts of the federal government.
"Certainly the Department of Education is one where there is no federal role," he said, noting Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution lays out what Congress has the authority to spend money on, "and education is not one of those things."
Other items on the Peroutka chopping block would be health-care funding, arts funding and Social Security, though regarding the latter he emphasized he would "be in favor of keeping promises to those we've made promises to." Peroutka says the process of paring down the federal behemoth would not be a gradual or phased-in program, but would be more of a cold-turkey action.