Lawrence O'Donnell eviscerates Rand Paul

A must-watch clip from yesterday's Last Word With Lawrence O'Donnell:

Rand Makes False Claims About Public Workers

Think Progress makes a great catch:

Yesterday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) appeared on Fox Business Network to continue [the] war on labor rights, using his time on the station to attack unions and claim their pay and benefits are too high. At one point during the interview, the senator began attacking “government unions,” saying they are “going to have to” contribute to their pensions and health care plans, just like Paul has to as a senator, and that Kentuckians back home don’t have any sympathy for government union workers because they pay for their retirements.

The problem with Paul’s assault on public employee unions is that it’s based on a false premise. Public workers at all level of government have to contribute to their pension and health care plans. Federal employees contribute to the Federal Employment Retirement System (FERS), which requires them to contribute to the fund at a rate equivalent to one percent of their yearly salary. Meanwhile, their health care, just like Paul’s, is covered by the Federal Employee Health Benefits (FEHB) program, which also requires employees to share the cost with their employer, usually 25 percent of premiums according to the Office of Personnel Management.

...Paul is certainly entitled to his own opinion on public employee unions, but to coin an old phrase, he isn’t entitled to his own facts.

President Obama's Speech on Libya

President Obama delivered an address last night to update the American people on the situation in Libya. In case you missed it, here's the video:

Governor Beshear: Standing up for Kentucky

Today's Courier-Journal included this op-ed piece from Governor Beshear:

We proposed filling the shortfall in the 2011 Medicaid budget with money from the 2012 Medicaid budget, then filling the newly created hole with efficiency measures and with new managed-care delivery principles that many states have used to reduce their Medicaid costs.

...But over the last few weeks, forces in Frankfort who do not share the same values as the people of this state escalated this problem into a momentous battle that jeopardized our very ability to educate our children, provide health care for our vulnerable populations and keep our streets safe.

Rather than solve the Medicaid problem with Medicaid money, the Senate Majority insisted on unnecessary across-the-board cuts to core services.

Editorial comic roundup

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Medicaid endgame

Today's Courier-Journal included this great editorial:

The silver lining is that the outcome this week is probably as good as could have been expected, given yet another display of obstructionism by Senate President David Williams.

...The Medicaid funding crisis was serious business and should have been handled that way. After all, the state pays hundreds of millions of dollars each year on the program, which serves about 820,000 poor and disabled Kentuckians. Yet, Sen. Williams, who hopes to be Gov. Beshear's Republican opponent this fall, treated the issue as a political football. Instead of striving for consensus, he spent the regular session grandstanding, berating the Governor for “failing” to manage Medicaid properly.

When it comes to Kentucky's needs, nothing is more important to Sen. Williams than Sen. Williams.

President Obama's weekly address

The President says that thanks to our men and women in uniform, the military mission in Libya is succeeding even as responsibility is transferred to our NATO allies and partners.

Governor Beshear's weekly address

Abramson touts Governor Beshear's record

The Enquirer has the story:

Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear has successfully guided Kentucky through tough times during the past four years and has earned a second term, his running mate, former Louisville mayor Jerry Abramson, said Thursday.

...Confronted with the recession almost immediately upon taking office in late 2007, Beshear and lawmakers balanced the budget eight times in three years, cutting more than $1 billion in spending.

They did it without significant cuts to education, public safety or safety net programs like Medicaid – and without raising taxes, Abramson said.

David Williams and 'totally unnecessary' cuts

From today's Herald-Leader:

Whatever the reason, [David] Williams and his fellow Senate Republicans demanded totally unnecessary across-the-board spending cuts in exchange for transferring funds between budget years, rebuffed all of House Democrats' compromise proposals and shut down the regular session early with no Medicaid fix enacted — raising the danger of a 35 percent reduction in reimbursements to Medicaid providers starting April 1.

Now, in a special session that is lasting far longer than necessary, Democrats and Republicans in the House cobbled together a compromise measure including some targeted spending cuts that will kick in only if the Beshear administration fails to deliver on the projected Medicaid savings it has promised.

...The House has sweetened the deal; the Senate should approve it.

Beshear's transparency website rated best in US

Today Governor Beshear issued this press release:

FRANKFORT, Ky.– Gov. Steve Beshear’s groundbreaking e-transparency website, Open Door, has once again received top honors as a comprehensive, searchable portal that enables taxpayers to explore how government money is being spent. For the second year in a row, the U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), a nonprofit, nonpartisan public interest advocacy organization, has recognized the site, online at www.OpenDoor.KY.gov, as a leader in setting the standard for spending transparency on government expenditures.

“I’m very proud of my administration’s efforts to make government more accountable and transparent to the people,” Gov. Beshear said. “Given our nation’s difficult economy, citizens deserve to know how their tax dollars are being spent and we created Open Door to give them such access. We remain committed to this high standard of open government and are proud that we may serve as an example to other states.”

In U.S. PIRG’s, Following the Money 2011 report, Kentucky and Texas share the honor of scoring 96 out of a possible 100 points, receiving the report’s highest ranking for states offering broad and detailed spending information. Kentucky also topped the ratings in 2010 and retained the honor again this year in spite of the use of more rigorous scoring criteria.

The report called Kentucky a “pioneer” that has “taken strides to remain at the head of the pack.” The website now posts a database of government-owned land parcels, and GIS and customizable maps for demographic data.

Shortly after taking office, Gov. Beshear issued an Executive Order in the spring of 2008 to establish the e-Transparency Task Force; a 14-member bipartisan panel charged with providing a more transparent and accountable state government. On Jan. 1, 2009, Kentucky’s Open Door was launched after a concerted, multi-agency effort, led by officials of the Finance and Administration Cabinet.

Since the site was first launched, improvements and enhancements have steadily been made. Significant upgrades included making it more user-friendly and adding significant new categories of information, such as comprehensive detail on state contracts, and up-to-date data on state employee salaries. In January 2010, the judicial branch also joined Gov. Beshear’s e-Transparency website. Open Door currently hosts information from both the executive and judicial branches, and all of Kentucky’s constitutional officers.

New in 2011, Open Door now also gives users the option to download expenditure records. This function allows users to download information by fiscal year, or by a search that they create.

“The transparency practices demonstrated through Open Door highlight Kentucky as a national role model in accountability and openness in the use of public funds,” stated Finance and Administration Secretary Jonathan Miller, who chaired the Governor’s e-Transparency Task Force. “Open Door itself is an outstanding example of government efficiency as only existing state resources were used to create the award winning site. No new funds were specifically dedicated to creating Open Door.”

The Finance and Administration Cabinet’s Office of Policy and Audit estimates that the Open Door website will eliminate 40 percent of the administrative costs of procurement assistance requests, and could reduce the costs associated with Open Records requests by as much as 10 percent.

The U.S. PIRG report coincides with Sunshine Week, a national initiative to promote a dialogue about the importance of open government and freedom of information sponsored by the American Society of News Editors. Thirty-nine states provided feedback for the report.

To access the U.S. Public Interest Research Group’s full report, Following the Money 2011, click here.

President Obama's weekly address

Even as the President maintains his focus on international crises in Japan and Libya, he discusses his trip to Latin America to open up markets for US products.

Governor Beshear's weekly address

KY's papers on David Williams' political games

Kentucky's newspapers have been weighing in on the shameless political games that David Williams is playing with the state's budget. Here's what the Herald-Leader had to say:

Contrary to Senate President David Williams' continuing efforts to deceive Kentuckians, all the available evidence strongly supports Beshear's proposal to offset the money shifted from next year's budget to this year's with savings from implementing a managed care approach to Medicaid at the start of the next fiscal year.

All the proof Williams has to the contrary are the misleading words coming from his own mouth and the mouths of his Republican parrots in the Senate.

Williams and those parrots are totally responsible for the breakdown of House-Senate talks in the regular session that ended last week. They are totally responsible for the wasteful cost of the ongoing special session. And they will be totally responsible if Medicaid recipients and providers suffer the painful consequences of huge reimbursement reductions from April 1 through June 30.

The Courier-Journal added this:

Sen. Williams — whose proposal to cover the Medicaid shortfall by imposing additional, across-the-board cuts to already strapped state agencies, including schools, lost even Republican support in the House — actually proposed a public debate with the Governor over their positions on dealing with the budget shortfall. A debate now? Really?

That suggestion pretty much proves that Sen. Williams' campaign season against Gov. Beshear started early, well before GOP voters sealed the deal by giving the Burkesville legislator their nomination. (In doing so, Sen. Williams also is re-coining a political term: He is a presumptuous nominee.) It also pretty much proves that everything, even the state's business, is toast when it comes too close to Sen. Williams' overheated personal ambitions.

The people of Kentucky need to remember who hung up state business on the road to political advancement, and who used his bully pulpit to bully, as they weigh the candidates' performance through the year.

David Williams get fact-checked

From Bluegrass Politics:

The statement: “Governor Steve Beshear failed to properly manage the budget and now we have a $166 million budget hole to fill this year.”

— Senate President David Williams, in a March 14, 2011, e-mail to supporters of his campaign for governor

The ruling: Mostly false

The facts: There is a shortfall in the state Medicaid budget this year, but Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear isn’t responsible for most of it, as Republican gubernatorial hopeful David Williams claimed.

Republican Budget Values

A great new ad from Americans United for Change:

Beshear: Help prevent unneeded budget slashing

Today Governor Beshear issued this press release:

Frankfort, Ky.- Time is running out to prevent devastating reimbursement rate cuts to health care providers unless citizens demand an end to Senator David Williams’ political gamesmanship, Governor Steve Beshear told Kentuckians today. Legislators returned to Frankfort today for a special session to balance the Medicaid budget – an action left incomplete when David Williams ended the 2011 Regular session early, without an agreement.

“The citizens of this state should be outraged – as I am – that Sen. David Williams has once again allowed petty politics to overrule the needs of the people of Kentucky,” said Gov. Beshear. “Senator Williams and the Senate Republicans have one job to do in Frankfort, and that is to balance the budget. They not only failed to complete this critical task, but also proposed to balance the Medicaid budget on the backs of our schoolchildren, our state troopers, our veterans, our senior citizens and our college students. It’s a draconian and totally unnecessary approach.”

In a two-day, nine-city trip around the state, Gov. Beshear is warning Kentuckians of the devastating cuts Medicaid providers are facing if an agreement is not reached before April 1.

Due to a shortfall in the Medicaid budget, Gov. Beshear recommended in November to balance the budget by transferring $166.5 million from the FY2012 Medicaid budget to FY2011, then capturing those savings through expanded managed care programs and other program efficiency measures. The House overwhelmingly approved the Governor’s approach in a bipartisan manner. However, with just three days left in the legislative session, Sen. Williams proposed an unconscionable plan to make cuts across all of state government, including to SEEK, the basic funding formula for Kentucky’s classrooms, to higher education, to social workers and to state troopers. Williams’ plan was rejected by not only Gov. Beshear and House and Senate Democratic members, but also by House Republican members. In all, over eighty percent of the Legislature rejected Williams’ plan.

If no agreement is reached, health care providers, including hospitals, nursing homes, doctors and others, face an approximate 35 percent rate cut in reimbursements, which many have warned could cause layoffs and possibly facility closures. The cuts must go into effect on April 1.

“As we enter this special session, we are fighting the clock,” warned Gov. Beshear. “The legislators have several options; however, the approach I proposed more than three months ago, and the House supports, protects our students, families and businesses from unneeded budget slashing.”

Click here for a chart that gives information on how to contact local Republican senators, what facilities in NKY would be impacted by reimbursement rate cuts, and how much Sen. Williams has proposed to cut schools and universities in the area.

Governor Beshear on special session

Governor Beshear penned an op-ed piece for today's Courier-Journal. Here's an excerpt:

Kentucky's Constitution directs the legislature to enact a budget and keep it balanced.

But Sen. Williams' refusal to rebalance the current year's Medicaid budget jeopardizes the health care services upon which some 800,000 Kentuckians rely — not to mention putting thousands of jobs at risk at the institutions that provide those services.

His refusal to act on a minor shift in the higher education budget may also force Kentucky's school districts to pay back $135 million in federal funds.

Governor Beshear makes a stop at CVG

WCPO reports:

Editorial comic roundup

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President Obama's weekly address

The President pays homage to former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, commends the great strides that have been made to create a more equal American society, and reaffirms his resolve to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act.

Governor Beshear's weekly address

KDP Chair on Republican obstructionism

Today the KDP issued this press release:

Kentucky Democratic Party Chairman Dan Logsdon is calling out Republican Senate President David Williams for overseeing a partisan backroom maneuver that rejected eight highly qualified nominees for state boards and commissions without a single public hearing. Williams has refused to release information and documents from the confirmation process leaving Kentucky tax payers in the dark.

“The Kentucky State Senate has become a partisan house of horrors,” said Dan Logsdon, Chairman and Executive Director of the Kentucky Democratic Party. “This was a shameful abuse of power which may explain why it was done in the middle of the night. Republican Senators, under David Williams’ direction, didn’t grant these nominees an interview, won’t reveal how the decisions were made and now won’t even release documents on why they were rejected. There are two-bit dictatorships with a more transparent political process than the State Senate under David Williams.”

On Tuesday, State Senate Republicans met late at night and rejected eight highly qualified nominees to fill positions on several state boards and commissions, including two minority women to serve on the Parole Board. The nominees were rejected without a public hearing and, as of Thursday, Senate Republicans have refused to release documents on why they were not approved.

Of Beshear’s nominees, several had already begun their service and had left jobs in the private sector. Due to state law, rejected appointees are not eligible for appointment to another State Board for two years, leaving several without a job. The nominees were not told why their appointments were rejected and have been denied information on their nomination process.

“This was a petty partisan move, pure and simple and Kentuckians should be offended by it,” said Logsdon. “Before they slinked out of town without finishing the people’s business, David Williams and the Senate Republicans showed Kentucky that they have no interest in running a government free of politics. Kentucky taxpayers are grownups, they deserve better than to have their government keep secrets from them.”

Rand's solution for rebuilding Brent Spence: tolls

The Enquirer has the story:

"I don't want to tell you that there isn't any money. But there isn't any money," Sen. Rand Paul told chamber member Brent Cooper in response to a question about funding for the bridge.

...As for finding funding for the Brent Spence Bridge, Paul had other dramatic ideas to share, such as selling the bridge to a private company to build.

"Probably have it in a year and a half if you sell it to somebody. That's thinking way outside the box, but let somebody build it for you, and there are companies that will do it," he said, adding that doing so would probably mean significant tolls for the next 100 years or so.

Deep budget cuts not necessary

A terrific editorial ran in today's Herald-Leader:

Senate Republicans — led by President David Williams, Beshear's likely opponent in this fall's gubernatorial race — ignore [Beshear's] past successes in dealing with fiscal crises and claim the governor has no chance of finding enough savings to fill the budget hole by moving Medicaid to managed care.

Not surprisingly for a group led by a gubernatorial candidate who wants to endear himself to the Tea Party movement, Senate Republicans want to cut, cut, cut. Their proposal includes limited cuts in the last quarter of the current fiscal year and across-the-board cuts in the fiscal year beginning July 1.

...These cuts aren't necessary. What Williams and Senate Republicans are proposing are cuts made just for the sake of cutting, just for the appearance of cutting during an election year when a Republican gubernatorial candidate with a record of voting for tax increases and earmarked projects funded by massive bond issues needs to get right with the Tea Party movement.

Editorial comic roundup

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President Obama's weekly address

The President calls for Democrats and Republicans to come together on a budget that cuts wasteful spending without sacrificing job-creating investments in education, innovation and infrastructure.

Rand gets fact-checked

The folks at PolitiFact look into Rand Paul's recent statements about Wisconsin's public school teachers:

Paul said twice on national television that the average public school teacher in Wisconsin "is making $89,000 a year." We’re assuming his figure isn’t just for salary, in which case his number would be too high by $40,000. But even if he meant salary plus benefits, his figure is too high by $14,000.

We rate Paul’s statement False.

Governor, House leaders reject Williams plan

Today Governor Beshear issued this press release:

FRANKFORT, Ky. – Vowing to fight cuts to priority programs, including K-12 education, Governor Steve Beshear and House Democratic leaders rejected Senator David Williams’ eleventh-hour proposal on the Medicaid budget.

“Sen. Williams wants our schoolchildren, our college students, our seniors, our veterans, our state police, our prosecutors, our social workers and many others to pay for a shortfall in the Medicaid budget,” said Gov. Beshear. “I won’t stand for one penny to be hijacked from our school systems, nor one cent stolen from public safety to protect our families. My proposal fixes Medicaid within the Medicaid budget without these painful and unnecessary cuts.”

Facing a shortfall in the Medicaid budget, Gov. Beshear proposed transferring $166.5 million from the FY2012 Medicaid budget to FY2011, then capturing those savings through expanded managed care programs and other program efficiency measures. The proposal passed overwhelmingly in a bipartisan manner in the House.

Senate President David Williams’ proposal, passed by the Senate, would instead cut $148.5 million from the non-Medicaid areas of the budget, with 81 percent of the cuts coming from priority areas of education, health care and public safety. This includes:

• Education: $47.4 million from K-12 education, including $38.4 million from SEEK, the basic funding for formula for classroom teaching. These cuts to SEEK are in addition to the estimated $49 million shortfall in FY 11 and $29 million in FY 12.
• Higher Education: $28 million from higher education, including $22 million from institutions’ base budgets and $4.3 million from student financial aid.
• Health and Family Services (non-Medicaid): $19 million from non-Medicaid programs in the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, including social workers, public health departments and Meals on Wheels services.
• Justice and Public Safety programs: $17.4 million from public safety programs, including state troopers, local jail support and juvenile justice programs, as well as $12.1 million from the Corrections Department.
• Judicial Branch: $8.5 million from the Judicial Branch, which has suffered from layoffs under previous cuts.
• Rest of state government: $28.2 million from the rest of state government, including job creation programs, state parks, environmental and worker safety programs and veterans assistance programs.

This proposal ignores the cumulative impact of eight budget cuts totaling over $1 billion to agency budgets over the past three years and the enacted cuts already built into FY12. Many targeted programs have already faced 20 to 30 percent budget cuts.

“We have balanced our budget eight times in three years because of the global economic recession, and with it, a billion dollars has been cut from our state budget,” said Gov. Beshear. “Yet, every time, we have protected SEEK from cuts. I am not about to start cutting it now, especially when there is a viable alternative to balance our Medicaid budget on the table.”

House leaders pledged to reject Senate plans to cut state services across the board as legislators head into a conference committee on the Medicaid budget bill.

“The most prudent choice is to allow the Governor to continue to manage this Medicaid deficit before we take the radical option of cutting education and other essential services,’ said House Speaker Greg Stumbo. “If you look at the Governor’s track record over the last three years, he’s cut about a billion dollars from government spending without having Kentuckians suffer through the crises we see in many other states. The Governor has a proven track record, and deserves our support.”

“Other states have implemented expanded managed care contracts that have generated savings while improving health outcomes,” said Health and Family Services Cabinet Secretary Janie Miller. “We are confident that we will replicate those results. The Cabinet is poised to act quickly and aggressively to achieve contracts with managed care organizations to capture the required savings in FY 12."

Without passage of a Medicaid bill, the only alternative would be to cut health care provider rates by 30 percent, warned Sec. Miller, which would also lead to layoffs, furloughs and reductions in health care services.

Poll: Jack Conway leads by nearly 20 points

From cn|2:

The first poll of Kentucky’s 2011 attorney general’s race shows that Jack Conway — after running two statewide races — begins with a nearly 20-point advantage over Republican challenger Todd P’Pool.

...The cn|2 Poll of 804 likely voters showed Conway starts with support from 52.1% of respondents while P’Pool begins with 32.7%. Another 13.6% are undecided.

Dems Call on GOP to Join Budget Negotiations

Geoff Davis votes to protect Big Oil subsidies

The Republicans are apparently lying when they say they're concerned about the deficit:

With Big Oil raking in record profits, House Democrats offered a Motion to Recommit to the House Republican short-term spending bill this afternoon making a responsible cut to the budget: putting an end to taxpayer-funded subsidies to large oil companies. Repealing these subsidies would save taxpayers tens of billions over the next decade and even ex-Shell CEO John Hofmeister agrees saying “with high oil prices, such subsidies are not necessary.”

...Republicans voted unanimously against the motion, defeating it by a vote of 176-249.

Geoff Davis, of course, voted with the Republicans on this. Geoff owes us an explanation. Why is he willing to hand over our tax dollars to Big Oil? Could it have anything to do with the $191,270 in contributions that Geoff has accepted from the Oil & Gas industry?