Panhandling in Florida

Big surprise, but I've always been against school vouchers. To take more money away from a school that is deemed as "failing" just seems like a bad idea. These are the schools that in my mind need better resources to make them more attractive to the better teachers.

It should come as no surprise then that I am generally pleased with the ruling in Florida today involving the use of vouchers to allow kids to attend private religious schools. It seems to me a pretty cut and dry case.

A Florida law that allows students at failing public schools to attend private religious schools at taxpayers' expense is unconstitutional, a state appeals court ruled Monday.

The 2-1 decision by the 1st District Court of Appeal upholds a ruling by a trial judge saying the state constitution forbids the use of tax money to send youngsters to religious schools.

"Courts do not have the authority to ignore the clear language of the Constitution, even for a popular program with a worthy purpose," Judge William Van Nortwick wrote in the decision.

Yes, the case will be appealed by the state of Jeb Bush, but the state constitution forbidding tax money for religious schools aspect seems pretty clear to me.