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jeffapierson.bsky.social
@jeffapierson.bsky.social
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jeffapierson.bsky.social
Forty Questions for Opponents of Idaho’s Education Tax Credits

jeffapierson.substack.com/p/forty-ques...
September 26, 2025 at 3:19 AM
jeffapierson.bsky.social
September 25, 2025 at 5:25 PM
jeffapierson.bsky.social
Local Control or No Control!
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September 25, 2025 at 5:18 PM
jeffapierson.bsky.social
Going Along Is Easier, But What is the Cost?

The Difference Between Compliance and Citizenship
jeffapierson.substack.com/p/going-alon...
September 25, 2025 at 5:15 PM
jeffapierson.bsky.social
Does a Spirit of Bigotry Still Haunt Idaho Education?

jeffapierson.substack.com/p/does-a-spi...
Every generation of Idahoans has heard the refrain that public funds must never support private schools. Opponents of school choice frame this as a matter of fairness, constitutional duty, and necessary for the survival of public education. What is too often forgotten is that this opposition was born in discrimination, and in Idaho’s case, written into law as a moral failure at the state’s founding. In 1875, Congressman James G. Blaine proposed an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to prohibit public support for “sectarian” schools. Everyone at the time understood what “sectarian” meant: Catholic. Protestant practices like King James Bible readings were considered “nonsectarian” and therefore acceptable in the public schools. Catholics who resisted and built their own schools were branded outsiders. Blaine’s proposal failed in the Senate, but it ignited a movement. When Idaho entered the Union in 1890, its founders imported the same language into Article IX, Section 5 of the state constitution. That clause barred any appropriation in aid of schools controlled by a church or religious denomination. It was not about protecting taxpayers or preserving quality. It was about excluding one class of schools, and the families who depended on them. That choice aligned Idaho with a wave of anti-Catholic prejudice sweeping the nation.
September 25, 2025 at 5:12 PM
jeffapierson.bsky.social
Who Decides Idaho's Future?

jeffapierson.substack.com/p/wanted-lea...
September 25, 2025 at 5:11 PM