An otherwise very good story in the Arizona Republic today begins badly:

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to review the constitutionality of an Arizona program that diverts state tax revenue into private-school scholarships.

Here’s the thing: it doesn’t do that. No state tax revenue is used in Arizona’s program, which offers a tax cut (a.k.a. “credit”) to folks who donate to non-profit k‑12 tuition assistance organizations. Those non-profits then subsidize private school tuition for families seeking financial help.

Back in 1999, the Arizona Supreme Court made all this clear. Those who were trying to kill the program (at the time, the “petitioners”) claimed that the donated funds were “public money.” The Court begged to differ, writing:

Petitioners argue that this tax credit channels public money to private and sectarian schools in violation of the state constitution.… As respondents note, however, no money ever enters the state’s control as a result of this tax credit. Nothing is deposited in the state treasury or other accounts under the management or possession of governmental agencies or public officials. Thus, under any common understanding of the words, we are not here dealing with “public money.” (p. 19–21)

It would be fine for the Arizona Republic to report that critics refuse to accept the Arizona Supreme Court’s interpretation, and that they are hoping the U.S. Supreme Court will see things their way (FYI: not gonna happen). But it is not okay for the Republic, on its “news” pages, to take sides in a case now before the U.S. Supreme Court by adopting the legal assumptions of the program’s critics.

P.S. Yes, the title is a reference to this.