Thursday, January 22, 2015

Walker intimidated by introspection, changing course, learning

Tip of the hat to the health care advocates in Wisconsin who are suggesting to Gov. Walker that while he's in Iowa on one of his presidential campaign forays he take a look at that state's Medicaid strategies vis-a-vis federal funding which, if adopted, could save Wisconsin something like $315 million.
"The Iowa fix for BadgerCare is a win-win, making health care more affordable to health consumers just above the poverty line, and saving the state hundreds of millions of dollars," said Citizen Action of Wisconsin executive director Robert Kraig.
Not a bad deal for a state facing a $2.2 billion shortfall, and where thousands of low-income residents have been stuck with fewer and more expensive health insurance options because Walker, always the calculating pol, used available federal Medicaid funding offered in 2013 more as a way to fake joust in full Tea Party armor with the feds and President Obama than to provide pragmatic health insurance options for all Wisconsinites, as the federal funding had intended.

The bigger sticking point and reason why Walker will look to Iowa only for votes and cash and campaign PR, not for information or policy, is his tender ego and unshakable certitude. 

Walker never admits error - - which is not he issue here - - or changes course because he is fearful it would open his first decision to criticism.

In other words, Iowa for Walker is an earning experience, not a learning experience.

In this regard he's much like George W. Bush - - rigid, narrow minded, intimidated by introspection, and incapable of either conceding he might have made a different choice or that someone else could have a better idea or be a better manager.

Who loses here? State taxpayers and low-income residents.

Who wins? 

No one, not even Walker, since it's not, as he thinks, a matter of saying, "I'm sorry," or "I was wrong." People could care less about that.

Hell, it would humanize him a lot more than those pictures of cheeseburgers and pizza and Packer garb he posts on his Twitter and Facebook feeds.

Walker loses because it's about flunking Leadership 101 - - "I can learn."

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