We all know McGrory’s leanings, today he wrote a story about Romney’s budget cuts, both well documented at BMG. In his Globe article he talked about how Romney wanted to be known as;
Wait for it.
Someone who cared.
McGrory went on to detail a few quotes from Romney during an interview when he first started office four years ago.
“I ran for office and want to be governor because I want to do a better job for people who need government’s help,” he said.
Romney again: “If I’m seen only as the mastermind of cuts, it will be very hard to say, ‘Here’s a guy who cares.’ I will look to cut without cutting people at the edge.”
One more time: “Saying it doesn’t mean anything. People will see it and believe it — or not. The proof will be in the pudding.”
So what does our Governor do for people who need the government’s help you ask?
.. his machete also caught $410,000 in the Department of Transitional Assistance, better known as public welfare, specifically meant to fund about 333 additional beds for homeless people in the cold winter months.
Because of Romney’s actions, those beds are now gone. They won’t exist. The men and women who were meant to sleep in them will be destined to roam the streets on even the most frigid nights, sleeping on park benches, gathering warmth under bridges or over subway grates, subsisting on the frozen garbage they ferret out of the trash.
He asked the question to Lyndia Downie who runs the Pine Street Inn. She was also on Mitt’s transition team.
“The governor said he wouldn’t cut homeless money,” Downie said. “I had high hopes. He made a commitment. I thought he was going to think of things differently.”
But now, she added, “He’s completely, with this decision, gone against that.”
It’s not just the money, Downie said. In many ways, the timing of the cuts is even more vicious, coming as they do on the eve of the winter.
“This is a problem next week,” Downie said. “It feels like it came out of left field. If we had known a couple of months ago, we could have done something.
Mitt “I care” Romney, the only thing he ever cared about was himself. Is it January 4th yet?
My first thought was apparently on the minds of a few others…!
McGrory writes:
<
p>
The FY07 budget shows an increase of $4,874,295 (about 4.1%) to the Department of Transitional Assistance (consolidated with Caseworker Salaries and Benefits). To put it in perspective, the $410,000 cut is a quarter of a percent of their projected increase.
<
p>
Who determines how budget money is spent? I didn’t see anything in Romney’s .pdf that said “cut additional beds”. Was there something in the House & Senate budget that specifically spelled out what the emergency fund allocation could be used for? Or will it be up to the department manager and receiving agency to determine how they spend their money?
<
p>
Is there some other low impact way that where cuts could be made? Could it be argued that the additional beds are being put on the chopping block because people wouldn’t be as sympathetic with lots of smaller amounts that lead to increased efficiency? I see a lot of similarities to what happened during my town’s last override attempt. Officials threatened to lay off teachers and impose bus fees. But no one suggested looking at the little things first — reducing paper consumption, turning off lights, consolidating custodial services, etc..
<
p>
As I look through the list of cuts, I wonder if these are truly “emergency needs”. I am certain they are for the person out on the street. Maybe 10% is too much to hold in reserves, but if the spending trend continues, how long before the reserves are dried up?
This is why I really hope that Deval Patrick is successful in his efforts to add transparency and detail to the budget, because its current form is bullshit.
It would have been in 2002 or 2003, I think. During a year when many states had to make big budget cuts, the reporters chose to show how people in Fall River would be affected by reduced state aid. Mitt said that he thought most people who depend on state programs were putting the money into buying cokes and hamburgers and the funding was, therefore, unnecessary. I was watching the show with Ed Lambert, Mayor of Fall River, and we both just about fell off our chairs, we were so amazed at how out of touch the Governor was (is).
<
p>
It’s possible to find little efficiencies to cut government waste, but the real need is to understand how real people live, what choices are available to underemployed and minimum-wage workers, what happens when your health takes a turn for the worse, what life is like for kids who are being raised in poverty, etc.
<
p>
Mitt won’t ever care, because “those” people tend not to vote.