 Chris Carlson Carlson Chronicles |
Occasionally politics gives rise to an all-encompassing phrase that means more than the words themselves. During the mid-1950’s Senate hearings on the excesses of Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy’s red-baiting rhetoric the committee counsel asked a memorable question: “Have you no decency, Senator?
It was and remains a classic rhetorical question, one which answers itself.
In the wake of a recent report people who care about this state and its future should be asking Governor C.L. “Butch†Otter the same question. More pointedly, they should be asking the governor, as well as State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna, whether each honestly believes he is upholding their oath of office.
For those that do care about Idaho’s future - its children and their education, the evidence is overwhelmingly clear a convincing case can be made both could be charged with “dereliction of duty†and violation of their oaths.
Idaho’s Constitution is unequivocally clear that the primary duty of the state is to maintain a uniform and thorough system of public and free schools. No less an authority than the state’s former chief economist, Mike Ferguson, who ably served five Idaho governors and has an impeccable reputation for objectivity and honesty, has through the center he operates (The Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy) issued a report that says the state is not fulfilling its constitutional mandate.
Dear Governor and State Superintendent, answer these questions honestly and preface each with an “Are you proud. . . .â€: (more…)