The Texas Education Agency hired a conservative educational publishing company co-founded by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to provide biblical content for the state’s proposed K-5 reading program — a curriculum that has come under criticism for its emphasis on evangelical Christianity.
Espired, a partnership with Florida investor Brad Saft, sells right-leaning books and videos , from Fighting Indoctrination and The Truth about Climate Change to an updated guide on this year’s election, including the assassination attempt against President-elect Donald Trump. Last week, Trump tapped Huckabee, a Southern Baptist minister who hosts a talk show on a Christian network, to serve as ambassador to Israel .
But the company also sells The Kids Guide to the Bible , with animated Old and New Testament stories, like Noah’s ark and the Resurrection. The series features colorful illustrations drawn in the identical style as those in the Texas curriculum. A kindergarten lesson’s image of King Solomon , for example, and two more on the Golden Rule are lifted wholesale from covers of the company’s books.