Frankfort's Medicaid debacle is just getting warmed up.
That didn't stop Gov. Steve Beshear from writing a post mortem in today's Courier Journal, congratulating himself for postponing part of Medicaid's day of reckoning. Beshear also takes the opportunity to bash Senate President David Williams for proposing what amount to miniscule spending cuts that also don't address any real problems.
This is why our political process so often fails to stop the growth of government. If Democrats can bash Republican "cuts" that don't really address overspending while Republicans can pretend to want spending cuts without changing anything, then the worst elements in both parties can keep getting nominated and taxpayers lose either way.
Kentucky's Tea Party Republican gubernatorial candidate Phil Moffett started his campaign last year pushing for real spending cuts, but Beshear/Williams is a ruling class politician's dream come true. They both get to yell talking points at each other while Kentucky goes deeper in debt.
David Williams' campaign tried with some success to paint Williams' last-minute anemic cuts proposal as his Chris Christie moment. But Williams has agreed with Beshear on all of Beshear's smoke-and-mirrors budgets and all the tax increases that have gone through bear Williams' "yes" vote as well. Kentucky Republicans are desperate for a Senate President who will stop having so many Steve Beshear moments.
