Oklahoma starts bid for 55,000 Bibles that mirror ‘Trump Bible’

The Oklahoma Department of Education is currently accepting bids for a contract to supply 55,000 bibles to be displayed in schools throughout the state, according to a report in the Oklahoman. 

The criteria to qualify for entering a bid are extraordinarily specific – the potential supplier’s bibles must be the King James version and include copies of the Pledge of Allegiance, Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, and Bill of Rights. It must also be bound in leather or leather-like material to ensure durability, according to the bid documents. 

The outlet reached out to Mardel Christian and Education, which carries 2,900 different bibles, and none of them fit the parameters. 

There are two that do. 

One is Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the U.S.A Bible which is endorsed by former President Donald Trump. It’s often called the Trump bible and sells for $60. It’s unclear exactly how much Trump makes per bible, but previous financial disclosures showed he made $300,000 in royalties. 

There’s also the We the People Bible, which is endorsed by Donald Trump Jr. and sells for $90. 

If those two submit a bid at their normal retail price, 55,000 bibles would cost the state $3,300,000 or $4,950,000 respectively. 

Former Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson told The Oklahoman the bid request may not be legal. 

“It appears to me that this bid is anything but competitive,” Edmondson told the outlet. “It adds to the basic specification other requirements that have nothing to do with the text. The special binding and inclusion of government documents will exclude almost all bidders. If the bid specs exclude most bidders unnecessarily, I could consider that a violation.” 

Oklahoma Superintendent Ryan Walters said in June that he wants a bible in every one of the state’s classrooms. A spokesperson for Walters told the Oklahoman that they want them distributed as quickly as possible and that they will pay for it using personnel and administrative cost savings.