Trump Bible meets Oklahoma’s demand for public schools

The request is part of Republican state Superintendent Ryan Walters’ ongoing push to require Bibles in every classroom, which has been met with resistance from some of Oklahoma’s largest school districts.

Walters is seeking to spend $3 million in state funds on Bibles that meet certain criteria, including that the pages are filled with U.S. historical material. The Bibles must also be “bound in leather or leather-like material for durability,” according to state tender documents posted this week.

The nonprofit news outlet Oklahoma Watch first reported Thursday that the demands match the “God Bless the USA Bible” that Trump urged supporters to start buying earlier this year from a site that sells the book for 59, 99 dollars.

Asked Friday if the state’s bid was tailored for the Trump-backed Bible, a Walters spokesman said the proposal was open to any vendor.

“There are hundreds of Bible publishers and we expect strong competition for this proposal,” said Dan Isett, a spokesman for the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

Former Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson, a Democrat, said the offer “doesn’t pass the smell test” and said a court could strike it down if the lawsuit is found to restrict competition.

“All fingers point to the Trump Bible containing all these requirements,” Edmondson said.

In June, Walters ordered public schools to include the Bible in lessons for grades 5 through 12. The auction documents also specify that the Bibles include both the Old and New Testaments, the Pledge of Allegiance and the Bill of Rights.

“We can see that there are very few Bibles on the market that would meet these criteria, and all of them have been approved by former President Donald Trump,” said Colleen McCarty, executive director of the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice.

The name of the Trump-backed Bible is inspired by country singer Lee Greenwood’s patriotic ballad. Trump takes the singing stage at each of his rallies and has appeared alongside Greenwood at events.

The Bible’s website states that the product is “non-political and has nothing to do with any political campaign.” It says the site “uses the name, likeness and likeness of Donald J. Trump under paid license from CIC Ventures LLC.”

Trump reported making $300,000 from Bible sales, according to financial disclosures released in August. His campaign did not immediately return an email seeking comment Friday night.

Walters, himself a former public school teacher who was elected to his post in 2022, ran on a platform of fighting “woke ideology,” banning books from school libraries and getting rid of what he says are “radical leftists” that they indoctrinate children in classrooms.