If there ever was any doubt that the Missouri Democratic Party has its work cut out for itself, the conclusion of the state’s 94th General Assembly on Friday made the point painfully clear, as solid Republican majorities in both the state House and Senate used bullying procedural tactics to push through regressive legislation that will negatively impact life in this state in many essential areas, primarily health and education. It wasn’t pretty, but it was possible simply based on the numbers. With Republicans in control in both houses, once they found ways to set aside the differences that had disrupted their caucus throughout the session, they were able to steamroll the Democrats, who made impassioned speeches that did nothing to change the outcomes of the votes.
The hard work of chipping away at these Republican majorities – and, perhaps, overturning them – must begin now for the Democratic Party throughout the entire state. The party leadership must resist the temptation and pressure to focus most of its energy on the top of the ticket, where Attorney General Jeremiah “Jay” Nixon will likely oppose incumbent Republican Governor Matt Blunt. The party needs to dedicate significant time and resources to studying the state, district by district, looking for open seats and seats where Republican incumbents are vulnerable.
We know that health care leads the list of priorities of Missouri voters, based upon a recent study commissioned by the Missouri Foundation of Health. We also know that the results of this study goaded Blunt and the Republican caucus to prioritize Senate Bill 577, which passed both the state Senate and House on the last day of session. The Republicans are selling this bill, which established Mo HealthNet as a new way to administer Medicaid in Missouri, as evidence that they are both compassionate and fiscally conservative about delivering health care to the under-served.
Democrats need to fight this perception – loudly – now. They need to start and continue an assertive campaign to expose how little this new legislation does to restore medical services to the poor and vulnerable that resulted from the Republicans’ historic 2005 budget cuts. This is particularly important because health care has emerged as a wedge issue that offers genuine political advantage for progressive candidates. The Missouri Foundation of Health study found that 75 percent of voters support restoring the cuts to
Medicaid, while just 14 percent support maintaining the cuts. Further, restoring the cuts is supported across party lines, with Democrats the
most supportive (90 percent), followed by independents (71 percent).
Though Republicans are less supportive, a majority of Republican voters – 56 percent – still support restoring the cuts in Medicaid. That means there must be Republicans in Missouri who would vote for a Democratic candidate who was presented convincingly as a better defender of the public interest in the crucial area of health care.
MO HealthNet – known by state Democrats as “No HealthNet” – does not restore the Republican cuts to Medicaid. It returns a tiny percentage of needy Missourians to eligibility for subsidized health care, among many other changes, many of which will benefit private medical providers rather than ordinary Missouri citizens.
It is important to note that major medical institutions like BJC and SSM, as well as advocates for the poor, oppose the Republican plan, because cuts to Medicaid lead to later and more expensive medical interventions in emergency room visits by the uninsured.
If Democrats let Blunt and other Missouri Republicans sell the passage of this legislation as a progressive move on health care, they lose one clear advantage going into the 2008 elections. And it is clear from the bruising end to the recent legislative session that Democrats need every advantage they can get if they wish to stop Republicans from flushing the most vulnerable citizens of this state down the toilet. The dubious assertions about their health care plan coming from the GOP for political expediency must be challenged forcibly with the truth.