Trump, late night hosts weigh in on Louisiana putting Ten Commandments in schools

Bonnie Bolden
·3 min read
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BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — Former President Donald Trump and several late-night talk show hosts are the latest to weigh in on a new Louisiana law that will require the Ten Commandments to be posted in K-12 and higher education classrooms across the state.

Gov. Jeff Landry signed the legislation earlier this week, making it the first state to require religious posters in public education settings. He and Attorney General Liz Murrill have said they look forward to defending the move in court.

The ACLU, ACLU of Louisiana, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Freedom from Religion Foundation are suing the state. They argue that requiring the Christian document or any religious text in every classroom violates students’ rights to religious freedom and a separation between church and state.

New Louisiana law requiring classrooms to display Ten Commandments churns old political conflicts

Trump posted on his Truth Social network around 12:22 a.m. Friday, June 21 to express his support for the posters.

“I LOVE THE TEN COMMANDMENTS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, PRIVATE SCHOOLS, AND MANY OTHER PLACES, FOR THAT MATTER. READ IT — HOW CAN WE, AS A NATION, GO WRONG??? THIS MAY BE, IN FACT, THE FIRST MAJOR STEP IN THE REVIVAL OF RELIGION, WHICH IS DESPERATELY NEEDED, IN OUR COUNTRY. BRING BACK TTC!!! MAGA2024,” the post reads.

Similar laws have been challenged and overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1980, justices found in Stone v. Graham that requiring schools to post the Ten Commandments using private donations violated the First Amendment, despite the argument that the reason for posting them was secular, not religious.

However, more recent cases regarding the Ten Commandments being displayed at courthouses have received split backing. In 2005, justices held that two displays at Kentucky courthouses violated constitutional rights while one at the Texas Capitol building did not.

At the time, the line drawn was that if the display was meant to promote a particular religion, it violated constitutional rights.

Flodida man sending Louisiana schools Ten Commandments posters in Arabic, other languages

The President of the Universal Society of Hinduism Rajan Zed has offered for posters of the Bhagavad Gita to be displayed in Lousiana classrooms as well.

While the Satanic Temple is known for weighing in on national religious controversies, such as Florida and Texas allowing chaplains in schools, religious displays in public buildings and church clubs in schools, they have yet to issue a statement on the new Louisiana law.

The Church of Satan, however, posted on X, formerly Twitter, that they will not be stepping in on this issue.

“Yes we’ve seen this, no it isn’t our cue. We don’t want religious organizations involved in politics and lawmaking, so as a religious organization we don’t get involved in politics and lawmaking. We aren’t hypocrites. Secular orgs like @ACLU & @FFRF are more appropriate.”

Talk shows take on Ten Commandments

“Louisiana yesterday became the first state to require public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom. Apparently, they’ve been having a lot of trouble with kids coveting their neighbor’s oxen,” Seth Myers said.

The new law, and upcoming challenges, were the butt of jokes on several talk shows and comedy news programs this week.

Jimmy Kimmel dedicated almost two minutes of his monologue to the topic, saying Landry did this for attention and might need the Constitution posted in his own office.

“I will say, in fairness, the point in posting the Ten Commandments in schools is to remind third-graders not to commit adultery,” Kimmel quipped before going on to outline Trump’s relationship with the religious rules.

Stephen Colbert said the “dumb law” requires the poster to have large, legible type.

“Oh, come on, everybody knows if you want to make something accessible to kids, you don’t put it in a big font; you put it in a Hello Kitty Trapper Keeper,” he said.

Desi Lydic on “The Daily Show” said the font size might not matter, as the state ranks 38th in reading.

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