In a written response to a constituent concerned by his extremist budget, Daugaard offers deliberately misleading information about the impact of cuts to Medicaid and education, claiming that education funding will only decrease 3.6%.
So, we wondered, what would Candidate Daugaard say?
Candidate Daugaard denied the existence of a budget crisis in South Dakota. Then, when asked whether he would cut funds for Medicaid, he flatly said cuts to Medicaid were “off the table” because of Federal matching dollars. Seems to us like the candidate many South Dakotans voted for was not the governor they got.
Once in office, Governor Daugaard said the budget crisis in South Dakota places a “gun at our head,” and immediately proposed to cut $30 million from Medicaid and forgo an additional $45 million in matching federal dollars for nursing homes and families in need.
Hmmm… this is quite the predicament for South Dakota’s newly-minted governor.
Perhaps he should heed the advice of South Dakota Democratic Party Chairman, Ben Nesselhuf:
“Daugaard misled South Dakotans about the dire fiscal straits he and Governor Rounds had forced the state into through rapid overspending and policies that did not support economic growth. Claiming that his education cuts are only 3.6% when school districts across the state have already announced plans to increase class sizes, lay off teachers, rob maintenance funds, and raise local property taxes, seems totally out of touch with reality. Either Governor Daugaard doesn’t understand how his extremist budget will affect our children, schools, and local communities, or he prefers to ignore it. In either case, our children lose and our local communities bear the burden of the Governor’s budget cuts.”
While Candidate Daugaard would praise Ben’s advice as: “Not bad for a Democrat,” Governor Daugaard has shown that Republican policies don’t work for South Dakota. It’s time for honesty in government – that’s why as Democrats, we’re making sure South Dakota (actually) works for all of South Dakota.