So, Dick was for cutting Medicaid before he was against it? I'm confused as to why he would bring it up in the first place if that were not the case.
Sometimes, what you think you hear isn't what the other guy said.
I erred Monday when I wrote that Dick DeVos, the presumptive Republican nominee for governor, would do away with all or part of Medicaid, the government health care program that now serves 1.4 million Michigan residents.
That was based on a recent television interview in which DeVos suggested eliminating the state Single Business Tax to stimulate new jobs. During that discussion, he said we should "take a look" at what Missouri did with Medicaid, which was to wipe it out by 2008, while the state immediately cut off Medicaid to 100,000 people.
I thought DeVos was endorsing Missouri's Medicaid experiment, which has produced stirring media accounts of individuals' hardship. Such a move would make him an inviting target for Democrats.
But DeVos told me after my column appeared that he was only using Missouri's Medicaid strategy to illustrate a possible way to replace Michigan's Single Business Tax (SBT). In other words, just eliminate the SBT to make the state more business-friendly, and force the Legislature and governor to deal with the resulting $1.9-billion hole in the state budget.
Not wipe out Medicaid.
I misunderstood. It was my mistake. Honest, but regrettable. I should have made a better effort to make his position clear.
Snarkalicious comment. Truth is, Dick doesn't have a position, or a plan. Or if he does, he certainly isn't going to tell us about it. Might look bad. Better to lie about it now and do it later. Dick probably tipped his hand, and is now back-peddling like a madman.
Who is up for a game of poker with Dick?
The "total elimination" strategy gave birth to the landmark Proposal A school finance plan in 1993. The Legislature nuked all school property taxes, forcing a mad, six-month scramble to piece together a new finance system, which voters approved in 1994. DeVos says Granholm had three years to deal with the SBT and made little progress.
And Engler had 12. In the end, he just cut it and blew town. Nice, responsible guy there, leaving Granholm and the taxpayers holding the bag.
And in a similar fashion, Dick passes the buck-
But what would DeVos do about Medicaid? It's the state's fastest-growing budget problem, consuming one of every four state tax dollars.
"Who knows what the situation will be a year from now?" he said. "Strategies and solutions will be developed over time. There are other program ideas being developed in other states. Other governors are looking at creative solutions."
Dick wants other people to do the work for him. Once again, he demands immediate answers from Granholm, but when it comes to his plans, it can wait.
Different rules apply to Dick and his friends. Better get used to it if he becomes Governor.