Ten Commandments in Louisiana schools is fine – as long as they note the ones Trump broke
Louisiana’s governor signed a law requiring a poster-sized display of the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom in the state, something I’m completely fine with as long as those posters say, in large font along the top: “The Ten Commandments, Most of Which Donald Trump Has Violated.”
That seems fair, and I would be comfortable with students of any age walking into a classroom and receiving a daily lesson on the meaning of hypocrisy.
The Republicans who pushed for this law, which makes Louisiana the only state to mandate Ten Commandments posters in schools, seem laser-focused on history and accuracy. They describe the commandments as “a historical document.” And after signing the legislation, Gov. Jeff Landry said: “If you want to respect the rule of law, you’ve got to start from the original law giver, which was Moses.”
Okey doke. Let’s go with that. Because respecting the rule of law matters. And if we’re respecting the rule of law, I’m sure Gov. Landry would agree it would be educational malfeasance not to inform Louisiana students that the presumptive Republican presidential nominee and former president – a man Landry himself has enthusiastically endorsed – has broken a slew of the laws outlined on their classroom poster.
Any 10 Commandments poster should note the ones Trump violated
The law requires that the Ten Commandments posters be “at least eleven inches by fourteen inches,” and that the “text of the Ten Commandments shall be the central focus of the poster or framed document” and be “printed in a large, easily readable font.”
And again, that’s all completely fine with me, as long as there are notes on the poster or on an accompanying poster that detail the ways Trump has violated certain commandments.
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For example, per the language mandated by the state of Louisiana: “Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain.” Trump has previously dropped “g--damn” in his rally speeches.
After the then-president dropped a couple of GD bombs in 2019, Trump supporter and evangelical adviser Rev. Robert Jeffress of Texas told The Washington Post: “I certainly do not condone taking the Lord’s name in vain. There is a whole commandment dedicated to prohibiting that. I think it’s very offensive to use the Lord’s name in vain.”
Trump isn't exactly poster boy for church-going or adultery-avoiding
Next up on the commandments poster is: “Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy.”
Trump rarely goes to church, and on this Easter Sunday he posted this decidedly non-holy screed on social media: “HAPPY EASTER TO ALL, INCLUDING CROOKED AND CORRUPT PROSECUTORS AND JUDGES THAT ARE DOING EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO INTERFERE WITH THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 2024, AND PUT ME IN PRISON, INCLUDING THOSE MANY PEOPLE THAT I COMPLETELY & TOTALLY DESPISE BECAUSE THEY WANT TO DESTROY AMERICA, A NOW FAILING NATION, LIKE ‘DERANGED’ JACK SMITH, WHO IS EVIL AND ‘SICK.’”
The “Thou shalt not commit adultery” line on the classroom poster will require a substantial asterisk, as Trump was recently convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up money paid to adult film star Stormy Daniels to keep her quiet about an alleged affair.
Trump has a lengthy history of rumored dalliances that go along with his three marriages. And the infamous Access Hollywood tape, recorded a few months after he married his current wife, Melania, caught him commenting on a nearby actress: “I’ve got to use some Tic Tacs, just in case I start kissing her. You know I’m automatically attracted to beautiful – I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait.”
Now Trump is apparently Jesus? Marjorie Taylor Greene compares Trump to Jesus. Which Bible is she reading?
Trump Ten Commandments definitely don't say a thing about stealing
Louisiana students who look up from their desks and see “Thou shalt not steal” in large, easily readable font should certainly know that their governor’s pick to be president of the United States was, in 2019, ordered to pay $2 million in damages for using money from his own charity to pay off business debts and buy a painting of himself.
He has also been indicted for allegedly stealing classified documents, something thou should definitely not do.
And then there’s this foundational rule Landry and Louisiana’s Republican lawmakers rightly believe all students, regardless of faith, apparently, should abide: “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.”
Put more succinctly: Don’t lie.
If students of the Bayou State who gaze upon their government-mandated Ten Commandments poster are going to see that warning to “not bear false witness,” it is only fair that every remaining square inch of every classroom wall be devoted to detailing the multitudinous lies Trump told throughout his one-term presidency and the entire 2024 presidential campaign.
Maybe a photo of Trump will cancel out the 10 Commandments poster
The ACLU has said that it will sue Louisiana over the Ten Commandments law, writing on social media: “Public schools are not Sunday schools.”
That’s true. But I feel like we can avoid the courts if Louisiana simply abides by my idea of Trump-splaining to all students how often the avatar of the Republican Party violates those sacrosanct rules.
Either that or each classroom should also have a poster-sized picture of Trump. That would likely cause the Ten Commandments posters to burst into flames. Problem solved.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Louisiana Ten Commandments poster should note Trump broke several
