Luna Wins Idaho Primary

A few weeks ago Mr. Rural ED reported that former Rural Education Task Force Director Tom Luna was running for Idaho State Superintendent. Although he has won the Republican primary, his record as the Executive Director of the U.S. Department of Education's Rural Education Task Force is starting to catch up with him.

The Ridenbaugh Press comments on Mr. Luna's tenure with the Rural Education Task Force:

Luna was a Bush Administration official from early in 2003 into 2005, and one online resume lists him as senior advisor to Secretary of Education Rod Paige, director of the White House Initiative on Tribal Colleges and Universities (2003-04) but primarily, apparently, he was executive director of the U.S. Rural Education Task Force. One might expect Luna to speak at length about these experiences; instead, they tend to get perfunctory mentions. Why?

Could it be because there’s not much to tell? Or because the telling might make for some uncomfortable juxtapositions?

An editorial in the Idaho Statesman puts Mr. Luna's candidacy into a larger perspective.

Luna wants to encourage next-generation charter schools for students who are struggling to learn English or falling behind in math and reading. Jones wants to go slower, to ensure the state can provide fledgling charter schools with the technical help and legal counsel they need.

Luna supports a dramatic tax shift favored by many Republican legislators — shifting the public schools' maintenance and operations levy from the property tax to the sales tax. [Democrat Janet] Jones worries that the schools would lose a stable source of money.

Luna opposes an Idaho Education Association-backed voter initiative to raise the sales tax by a penny, pumping $200 million into schools. Jones supports the initiative.

The initiative may be a boon to Jones, a relative unknown running against an experienced Republican candidate. Teachers and public school supporters may be galvanized by an Election Day twofer: voting for the initiative and voting against Luna.