Trick ‘Em
2010-02-15 - by
Back in her days in the General Assembly the Governor developed a sure-fire way to deal with legislators: Bumfuzzle ‘em.
For instance: The Governor’s biggest department, the leviathan Department of Health and Human Services, has already plowed through its $200 million budget increase, plus spent another $250 million on no-bid contracts (a lot of them going to Perdue contributors and lobbyist-Secretary Lanier Cansler’s former clients).
So, with the red ink piling up a day of reckoning has come – it’s time to explain what happened to the money to legislators.
Governor Perdue’s solution: Fool the little darlings.
Here’s what happened: The Governor sent a minion over to the General Assembly with a slide projector and a stack of charts and the minion told legislators the Medicaid Home Care programs’ spending had sky-rocketed upwards 30% in one year – and, of course, legislators got the message. Home Care spending is out of control – which is why DHHS is in the red.
Except there’s one problem: The 30% increase in Home Care spending happened 5 years ago. Since then the program’s been growing by 5% a year. Plus, this year spending on Home Care is running $10 million behind last year.
But, of course, the Governor didn’t tell legislators that – so, the bumfuzzle worked like a charm.
The healthcare moguls got their no bid contracts. Secretary Lanier Cansler’s future as a lobbyist is safe. The Governor’s pipeline for campaign donations is secure. And, instead of legislators grilling Perdue and Cansler about no-bid contracts, the elderly Medicaid patients – who’re costing the state $10 million less this year than last year – got the blame for busting the budget.
Posted in General, North Carolina - Democrats
Trick ‘Em
2010-02-15/
Back in her days in the General Assembly the Governor developed a sure-fire way to deal with legislators: Bumfuzzle ‘em.
For instance: The Governor’s biggest department, the leviathan Department of Health and Human Services, has already plowed through its $200 million budget increase, plus spent another $250 million on no-bid contracts (a lot of them going to Perdue contributors and lobbyist-Secretary Lanier Cansler’s former clients).
So, with the red ink piling up a day of reckoning has come – it’s time to explain what happened to the money to legislators.
Governor Perdue’s solution: Fool the little darlings.
Here’s what happened: The Governor sent a minion over to the General Assembly with a slide projector and a stack of charts and the minion told legislators the Medicaid Home Care programs’ spending had sky-rocketed upwards 30% in one year – and, of course, legislators got the message. Home Care spending is out of control – which is why DHHS is in the red.
Except there’s one problem: The 30% increase in Home Care spending happened 5 years ago. Since then the program’s been growing by 5% a year. Plus, this year spending on Home Care is running $10 million behind last year.
But, of course, the Governor didn’t tell legislators that – so, the bumfuzzle worked like a charm.
The healthcare moguls got their no bid contracts. Secretary Lanier Cansler’s future as a lobbyist is safe. The Governor’s pipeline for campaign donations is secure. And, instead of legislators grilling Perdue and Cansler about no-bid contracts, the elderly Medicaid patients – who’re costing the state $10 million less this year than last year – got the blame for busting the budget.
Posted in General, North Carolina - Democrats