VICKSBURG — During the summer, the Legislature spent 10 days in a $600,000 special session unable to decide how to come up with $90 million to cover a shortfall in the state’s obligations to Medicaid, the federal-state program that provides health-related services to one of every four Mississippians, half of all children.
The House wanted to raise cigarette taxes but was willing to split the difference with the Senate, which wanted to raise assessments paid by hospitals. The Senate, doing the bidding of Gov. Haley Barbour, would not compromise on the assessment-only route.
Lots of other activity went on in lots of other venues, including courts, before last week’s announcement that a paperwork error had been discovered from many years ago. Voila. Rejiggering federal matching funds to correct the error will cover the shortfall.
Now, let’s ask ourselves this question: Suppose the divide between the Democrats who lead the House and the Republican governor had been bridged. Suppose either the tobacco tax or the hospital assessment or both had been enacted before the paperwork error was discovered. What do you think the chances are — given that the $90 million was no longer needed — that another special session would immediately have been called to rescind the higher taxes (or assessments)?
If you answered “zip” or “nada” or “nil,” you’d be correct.
In this case, partisanship in state government worked out for people’s wallets.
Fear not, however, because, in the same way that Ike followed Gustav, a new Democrat-Republican storm brewed up in Jackson just as the Medicaid crisis passed.
The new bluster and blow is over where on the ballot the names of the two candidates vying in a Nov. 4 special election to replace Trent Lott will be placed.
Barbour and Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann say the law is clear — or clear enough — that special election matters go at the end of general election ballots. For that reason, they approved a ballot that will have the U.S. presidential contest at the top, the U.S. Senate race between incumbent Republican Thad Cochran and Democratic nominee Erik Fleming next, then U.S. House seats, then local matters such as school board races, with the state’s hottest race — between Roger Wicker and Ronnie Musgrove — at the very bottom.
The reason the Wicker-Musgrove contest is a special election is that Lott resigned a year into his six-year Senate term. Wicker has been serving as Barbour’s appointee in the interim, and the Nov. 4 winner will serve the four years that will be left.
Another special election quirk is that they are nonpartisan. That means even though Wicker is clearly a Republican and Musgrove is clearly a Democrat, their party affiliations will not be printed on ballots.
Within mere moments of the ballot order being set, a petition was filed, conveniently in the court of Hinds County Circuit Judge Tomie Green, by Jackson attorney Sam Begley. It insisted that Barbour was wrong and that the law requires both Senate races to be at the top of the ballot, right under the presidential contest. The names of Green and Begley might not be immediately recognized, but they are strongly associated with Democratic Party causes. Green is a former member of the House. Begley has represented the state Democratic Party in previous causes.
And, miracle of miracles, while some parties wait years and years for court rulings, Green decided the case instantly. She issued an immediate restraining order declaring that Barbour’s ballot might cause “irreparable harm.”
Two considerations come to mind: What does it say about state Democrats that they believe their voters may not be able to find Musgrove’s name if it’s at or near the end of ballots? And what does it say about state Republicans that they believe it might help Wicker if some voters don’t make it all the way down the page?
Of course, Green’s order was appealed. Barbour has ample allies on the state Supreme Court and they tossed Green’s order like yesterday’s garbage. Later in the week she held a hearing, but it will come to naught.
To be fair, Barbour, as he did regarding the Medicaid shortfall, insisted that politics is not part of the picture. Indeed, he says, former Secretary of State Eric Clark, a Democrat, consistently put special elections at the end of ballots.
A guess, however, is that the citizenry sees exactly what’s going on. When partisan considerations are first, the public’s interests are second — if considered at all.
Sometimes that’s a good thing. Sometimes it’s not. Sometimes it’s amusing. But it can be very serious.
