Governor Continues to Miss Opportunities

An op-ed in the Boston Globe over the weekend once again highlights Governor Patrick’s ability to miss opportunities regularly.

Jim Stergios, executive director of Pioneer Institute authored the piece in which he points out that government has a responsibility to take care of certain populations, specifically children. The Governor, who had asked for expanded 9C powers back in January, has made devastating cuts to our schools while doing very little to cut waste and inefficient spending.

The Governor and the Democratic-controlled Legislature are very good at proposing new taxes and spending money, but when it comes to reform, they often miss the mark in a major way.

We are nowhere near being out of this recession. In order to navigate out of it, our lawmakers must come up with innovative ways to make state government run more efficiently. Stergios outlined a number of ideas that would save the Commonwealth millions of dollars including a Republican proposed idea that garnered slim support from Democrats. Our caucus suggested shifting Medicaid recipients who receive full benefits to the Commonwealth's managed-care program. We noted, like Stergios that this move alone could save well over $100 million annually. It was a good amendment, that picked up a few Democratic votes, but nowhere near enough to be adopted.

Our Governor and many Democratic lawmakers talk a big game, but unfortunately follow through has not been their strong suit.