Sunday, December 12, 2010

Governor Goodhair, Texas' Dimwitted Demagogue, Part II

By Manifesto Joe

So, after his bogus comparison of Social Security to a Ponzi scheme, now Rick "Governor Goodhair" Perry wants to pull Texas out of the Medicaid system?

Not so fast, some of his fellow Republicans warn.

Such a move would be a disaster for the state -- at least for everyone who relies on that system for medical care. It would also be very bad in pure fiscal terms.

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission has warned that the state would lose $15 billion in federal matching funds and would have 2.6 million more Texans thrown into the ranks of the uninsured if our state did such a stupid thing.

Our state already faces a budget shortfall that, by some estimates, could exceed $20 billion. This has been a consequence of stupidity in itself, for which Governor Goodhair was somehow not held responsible on Nov. 2 by the voters of this state. More such stupidity would be far more than the taxpayers of Texas could afford.

State Rep. John Zerwas, R-Richmond, a physician from the Houston area, had this to say: "I don't think (opting out) of Medicaid is really viable. If you dropped out today, the human and economic consequences are pretty immediate."

Perry's response was to sort of pull back some, him and haw, and call for "increasing flexibility and innovation in Medicaid."

Here are quotes from the report: "Opting out of Medicaid means giving up federal dollars paid by the state's residents to provide healthcare for our most vulnerable residents."

But the report wasn't without cautions about the status quo: "Staying in the program forces states to pay for a federally-mandated expansion of Medicaid with little control over the program's ever-rising costs ..."

I'm shocked, shocked to be told that things actually have to be paid for. Texas has never been known for its largess for the poor -- much more known for its vast hospitality toward the rich and relocating corporations. Part of that lure is our "low" taxes. We're the second-most-populous state in the U.S., and there's still no personal state income tax here -- just very high sales taxes, user fees, and just about everything else you can imagine that's regressive.

Politicians like Governor Goodhair aim to keep it that way. Their demagoguery comes in when they start talking this sort of neo-secessionism. That plays very well in this state with Ballcap Bubba, and with Bubbette, too. He gets 80% of the vote in some areas of this state.

Granted, the gap between what the state is getting from the federal government in Medicaid dollars, compared with the need, is great. Texas has far more impoverished and uninsured people than it is getting money for. But, please explain to me how opting out of the system is going to solve that problem?

Somehow, Governor Goodhair's office always takes full credit whenever Texas gets federal disaster relief funds, like after hurricanes and such. They never turn down any military-base money or defense contracts, either. The game seems to be getting as many of the perks as possible, and then leaving the poor and sick to die in some shithole. It's all the perks we can get, with as few of the bills as we are forced to pay.

More on Governor Goodhair's moronic demagoguery, coming to this blog soon.

Manifesto Joe Is An Underground Writer Living In Texas.

10 comments:

Jack Jodell said...

It appears that Gov. Goodhair is all blow and no show. He talked not too long ago about seceding from the Union (I wish HE would!). But when it comes right down to it, the guy is just another demagogue blowhard. He just makes outrageous statements to grab attention, and loudmouths like him LOVE attention. I'm sorry you have to put up with such insanity, Manifesto Joe, and I'll be looking forward to your next segment.

Marc McDonald said...

Earlier this year, Perry touted Texas as a "good example" of how low taxes and other Republican policies had made the state one of the "most prosperous" in the nation.
But the fact is, Texas is NOT particularly wealthy. It ranks a mediocre 25th in median household income.
The top spots are all taken up by Blue States (Maryland, New Jersey, Conn.). The states at the bottom of the list are all Red States (Mississippi, Alabama, Oklahoma, etc.).
And yet Perry can continue to spew this nonsense and not get called out by the MSM.

Anonymous said...

I heard something before about Perry blocking an investigation into a Texas man who was executed and who may have been innocent. But I never heard anything more about this story. The media never brought it up during the campaign. Once again, they give the Republican a free ride. In fact, as I recall, the original story about this originated not with the Texas media, but with a Chicago newspaper.

Manifesto Joe said...

Cameron Willingham. That case has been batted around for a long time. Story was initially broken by Chicago media, because the people who have been pushing on this one are death-penalty opponents from there. Media down here have generally covered it, though in moderation. From what I've read, it would have been a tough call for a juror. But I'd say it's better to give somebody a life sentence and see if their legal counsel can turn up something, rather than to just kill the person. The forensics experts didn't think the prosecution had enough solid on Willingham to end up with the state killing him. And personally, I oppose the death penalty in principle. Oh, I've known a few people whom I wouldn't have minded killing with my own hands. But should we empower the state thusly? I tend to think not.

Unknown said...

Great article, Joe. Thanks. The back to back Bush/Perry regimes have been disastrous for Texas education, crime rates (up), the environment, income disparities, economic opportunity! Total FUCKING DISASTERS.

Cletis said...

Joe, your governor is a proponent of "trickle down" for the poor. You know, something like the fellow with the enlarged prostate does about fifty times a night. Here in Kentucky our governor is now putting tax money into the development of a new theme park based on Genesis. Noah's ark in full replica complete with dinosaurs getting on board. No, I am not making this up. You folks might want to check out Chapter 1 and 2 of the Wizard of Ahs at my two-week old irreverent. progressive blog thebookofcletis.blogspot.com/
I love your blog, Joe. Cletis

Anonymous said...

Wow, a 20 billion dollar deficit, makes my home state of Michigan's 2 billion dollar deficit look quaint. Thanks for cheering me up Joe.

-WageslaveZ-

Manifesto Joe said...

WageslaveZ, I'm glad this was cheery news for you. But not so much down here. Word is out that the Republicans are already getting the meataxes out for education. This state isn't doing well in that area anyway, and now it's likely to get much worse. Right-wingers are always going on about the inadequacy of public education, and about how throwing money at a given problem won't solve anything. But the lack of money has been a perennial problem with public education down here. Where I went to high school, we had a guy with a degree in agriculture teaching biology, and microscopes that looked like something from about 1952 or so. And not even enough of them to go around. Needless to say, nobody from my high school graduating class ever excelled in the hard sciences. You often get what you pay for.

Cletis said...

Joe, I'm pretty sure your former "science" teacher is now a curator at our Creation Museum. This magnificent monument to enlightened Kentucky (my home) will soon be joined by the Ark Park. I've already proposed a "stoning pit" for consideration as a possible means of ridding our communities of "profligates and drunkards" per biblical instruction. I hereby request that you, and your very literate readers, offer up other possible attractions for consideration.
Thanks for visiting thebookofcletis.blogspot.com/ I'm honored that you dropped by. Please come by again and leave a suggestion or two. We can't let this park go under. What would you guys in Texas have to look down on if Kentucky were ever to reject ignorance as a way of life. I once suggested, "Kentucky: Backward and Looking Forward to Staying that Way" as our official state slogan. The governor wasn't too thrilled.
Cletis L. Stump

Old Scout said...

Joe -

Thanks to you, I no longer miss Molly as much as I used to. Keep up the fire!!
.