In a novel move, the Louisiana House passed a bill that provide a tax deduction of all private school tuition (half the cost, up to $5,000) – no ifs, ands or buts. Not only for the poor or those in inner city schools, but for all.

It’s a long way from becoming law, needing to pass the state’s Senate and then be signed by Democratic Governor Kathleen Blanco, who hasn’t taken a position.

The state’s teacher’s unions, through Steve Monaghan, who is president of the Louisiana Federation of Teachers, actually gave the bill a backhanded complement, saying he was glad to see they weren”t “pretending it would help students trapped in failing public schools.

We’re not sure why a bill can’t both help students in failing public schools and simultaneously help middle class parents under a burden of hard to bear tuition, but if the teacher’s problem is that this bill helps more people than less, we’re not so sure there’s a real market out there of public opinion on that.

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