Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live Today
Supreme Court Favors School Vouchers, Drug Testing
Aired June 27, 2002 - 13:16 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: The Supreme Court today ruled on a couple of key issues: school vouchers and drug testing.
CNN's Bob Franken has the details.
Hi there -- Bob.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Fredricka.
And of course, this was considered such a vital issue that it was the last one that the justices released. It was the issue about Cleveland school vouchers, which was a very, very fundamental question about the constitutional ability to provide school vouchers that can be used in parochial schools, schools that have religious training.
There's such a program in Cleveland. The people who get these vouchers, who have students who are attending substandard schools, can use them in religious schools -- most of them do, as a matter of fact -- and would. And those schools are allowed to provide religious training.
It was a 5-4 decision.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN (voice-over): It is one of the most emotional legal questions of our times, and well it should be. At issue, the quality of education for millions of our children, or, regrettably, the lack of quality in the public school systems, particularly urban public school systems throughout the United States.
But are vouchers the answer? Is government funding to send children to private schools, when most of the money ends up in religious schools, constitutional?
Cleveland, Ohio, provides such vouchers for students from substandard public schools. But the parent of one student, Doris Simmons-Harris, sued the board of education, charging that vouchers that are widely used to help pay for parochial schools violate the constitutional separation of church and state.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This going to be a lesson on the first commandment. FRANKEN: Federal lower courts have ruled at both levels that the constitutional commandment prohibits funding for religious education, and that vouchers do just that.
HOLLYN HOLLMAN, BAPTIST JOINT CMTE.: The question is whether the state can subsidize religious indoctrination in parochial schools.
FRANKEN: But supporters of vouchers have argued for years that the real issue is other fundamental values in the United States.
SISTER KAREN, ST. FRANCIS SCHOOL: I think it's about children, I think it's about education, and I think it's about parent choice.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN: And the Supreme Court has ruled that in spite of the fact that religious schools are involved, vouchers program in Cleveland is constitutional -- a major victory for advocates of vouchers, a major defeat for those who argue that this violates the separation between church and state. Justice -- the chief justice, rather, William Rehnquist, writing for the majority, says, "Constitutionality of a neutral education aid program simply does not turn on whether schools are religious or most recipients choose to use the aid at a religious school."
But there were some angry dissents in the case, as you might imagine. Judge John Paul Stevens said this was a decision that was profoundly misguided.
There was another decision, as you pointed out, Fredricka, involving public schools in the United States, this one the ability of schools to test -- provide drug tests for the students. And the justices, again by a 5-4 ruling, said that yes, they can expand drug testing. In the past, schools had been allowed to test athletes, because, of course, there's an argument that athletes would be in harm's way if, in fact, they were not clean from drugs.
This one now expands it to all extracurricular activities. It will mean that the Future Farmers of America -- just about any extracurricular activity -- is subject to a drug test, or at least school systems have the right to do so.
Clarence Thomas, the associate justice, wrote the majority opinion, saying, "The need to prevent and detail the substantial harm of childhood drug use provides the necessary immediacy for a school drug testing policy." He talked about a nationwide epidemic of drug use.
Again, there was some quite emphatic dissents, this one from Sandra Day O'Connor, where she said, "The particular testing program upheld today is not reasonable. It is capricious, even perverse."
But it is also now the law of the land. Schools will be able to expand drug testing to involve all extracurricular activities -- Fredricka. WHITFIELD: Well, Bob, much might be read into the voucher decision if the Supreme Court doesn't find -- doesn't have a problem with state funds being used for religious schools. Then perhaps on the pledge issue, that it may be read that, indeed, the case of the Supreme Court might rule in favor of the Pledge of Allegiance being able to be read in public schools.
FRANKEN: Well, you know, it's really quite interesting. First of all, if I could take just ten seconds to say that President Bush, that he was very pleased with this. Attorney General John Ashcroft said he was very pleased with this ruling. They are, of course, advocates of the voucher program.
As for the Pledge of Allegiance issue, there is a widespread belief that this one is not going to survive an appeal. First all, as you know, there's the appeal of the appellate court in San Francisco, and there this is the appeal that could possibly make it to the United States Supreme Court.
But this is such an interesting issue. It's been discussed for years and years. And of all people, Justice William Brennan, who was really a fierce advocate of the separation of church and state, even he said there is such a thing what he called a, quote, "ceremonial deity," that is to say that a reference to God is said so many times that people don't even really realize that they're referring to God -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, thank you very much, Bob Franken.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
