The Supreme Court on Tuesday delivered a landmark decision that strengthens the right of religious schools to obtain public funds, ruling that Montana violated the First Amendment when it excluded faith-based educators from a scholarship program supported by public monies.
Chief Justice John Roberts delivered the decision for a 5-4 Court, over three dissents from the liberal justices. The decision comes as surveys show support for President Donald Trump slipping among religious conservatives and could provide a needed buoy to his supporters as a Court he purported to stack with conservative jurists has delivered victories for liberals on abortion and LGBT rights in recent days.
“A state need not subsidize private education,” Roberts wrote. “But once a state decides to do so, it cannot disqualify some private schools solely because they are religious.”
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, long a champion of school vouchers, was on hand for oral arguments before the High Court in January. DeVos and GOP lawmakers like Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) have proposed a $5 billion tax credit to support private education, through which participating states provide dollar-for-dollar credits to taxpayers who contribute to scholarship programs.
The decision is a victory for religious conservatives and school choice groups, who were deeply invested in a case they viewed as a potential landmark. In the past, school choice advocates maintained a modest posture in the High Court, asking the justices to uphold low-dollar voucher programs in Ohio and Arizona. In Tuesday’s case, they posed a grander proposition—the Constitution requires states to include religious schools in their student aid programs. – READ MORE
Listen to the insightful Thomas Paine Podcast Below --