This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Jan. 28, 2013 - Claiming that Gov. Jay Nixon “articulated grand concepts” with “little detail" in his annual State of the State speech, House Speaker Tim Jones challenged the Missouri chief executive to work with the GOP-legislature “to find solutions” on the vexing issues of the day.
The Eureka Republican provided the Republican response to Nixon’s annual address, which took place Monday night in the Missouri House chambers in Jefferson City. Among other things, Nixon -- a recently re-elected Democrat -- called for more education spending, a statewide bonding initiative and a curtailment of the state’s tax credit programs.
As expected, Nixon also pushed for an expansion of Medicaid under the auspices of the Affordable Care Act. He also urged lawmakers to institute limits on campaign donations, even going so far to say that he'd use the power of his office to get a proposal on the ballot.
Jones’ pre-recorded response found some common ground with some of Nixon’s goals. He said policymakers “must work together to make sure our roads and bridges, the essential transportation routes vital to economic development, are maintained, repaired and, when necessary, rebuilt.”
He also stated that the General Assembly will “eliminate the credits that do not work, cap programs at a reasonable level to provide budget certainty, and ensure that taxpayers are protected.”
But Jones was much less conciliatory, and much more assertive, when it came to Nixon’s proposal to expand Medicaid, a move strongly supported by some state medical providers but widely criticized by Republican lawmakers, who have long resisted expanding the health-care program.
Jones portrayed the Medicaid expansion as “a call that has come courtesy of Obamacare and Washington, D.C.” and “a call the Republican-led legislature will not answer.”
“Eight years ago, Republican leadership made the difficult but desperately needed decision to rein in a welfare system that was growing at an unsustainable rate,” said Jones, referring to the GOP legislature’s decision to make steep Medicaid cuts in 2005. “It was a decision that saved the state billions of dollars and staved off almost certain bankruptcy. Today we are faced with a similar decision. On one side we have a governor and a federal government that believe bigger government is the answer. They want to take us down a fiscally irresponsible path that will saddle future generations of Missourians with a bill they cannot afford.”
Underscoring his point, Jones emphasized, “It’s a path Republicans will not follow.”
Jones also called for Nixon “to stand in support of the many Missouri hospitals that provide care to the un- and underinsured” by opposing the federal government’s reduction of reimbursements to hospitals for treating lower-income Missourians. Because of Medicaid expansion, those payments are set to decline in the coming years. Some fear that could hit rural hospitals especially hard.
“This ploy by the White House to force the hands of states like ours to expand Medicaid must be rejected, and we must develop a Missouri solution that will allow hospitals to continue to provide care, one that doesn’t require a massive expansion of government that Missouri taxpayers simply cannot afford,” Jones said.
Besides jabbing at some of Nixon’s priorities, Jones repeated his “Triple E” agenda. That includes placing caps on medical malpractice claims and altering employment law standards. And in a reference to the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut, Jones called for creating "a mental-health system that makes care accessible and effective" while not "trampling on the Second Amendment rights of our citizens."
He also called for the state to respond to Kansas’ aggressive tax-cutting, which Jones said “made their state extremely attractive to business.”
“These are the latest shots in what has been a prolonged — and very successful — effort to poach Missouri companies and Missouri jobs, the ongoing economic ‘border war,’” Jones said. “And if we do not respond to these very real threats, the war could turn into a rout. So we must immediately review our tax code and enact fiscally responsible policies that ensure we remain competitive with our neighboring states.”
Throughout his response, Jones urged Nixon to engage with the legislature, noting that lawmakers “are concerned about the governor’s pattern of retreating behind rhetoric instead of leading and engaging with us to find solutions.”
He said that he hoped Nixon would "break from his past pattern of ivory tower executive isolation, roll up his sleeves and work with us to find common ground."
“You sent us to Jefferson City for results, and Republicans in the General Assembly are committed to leading a government worthy of the citizens it serves,” Jones said. “Whether it is education innovation or labor reform, saving our healthcare industry or balancing our budget with fairness and equity, the truth has no agenda and the challenges before us shall require bold leadership and transformational ideas.”
“And if our governor is not up to the demands these times require, your General Assembly is prepared to provide the leadership that is so desperately needed,” he added.
