It's been a rough few weeks for supporters of school vouchers. First came the Election Day defeat of ballot initiatives in California and Michigan that would have created statewide programs that return tax dollars to parents who send their kids to private schools. These measures fell by a ratio of more than 2 to 1, despite multimillion-dollar campaigns by wealthy voucher proponents. Then last week, in a verdict with nationwide consequences, a federal appeals court ruled that the voucher program in Cleveland, Ohio, violates the constitutional separation of church and state.
Voucher opponents, led by the teachers' unions, celebrated. "This...