“‘Next January … you are going to be begging and pleading and scratching and clawing for every dime,’ Omaha Sen. Burke Harr warned his colleagues during floor debate . . . ‘We don’t have the money.’” ~ “’Sadly, the . . . senators who supported these proposals have no plan for our financial future except… more
Readers are referred to a Local View column published today, April 13, 2012, in the Lincoln Journal-Star that was co-written by Shelli and me. In the article, we argue that Governor Heineman should use the opportunity presented by his veto of LB599 to draw a line against the Unicameral’s profligate spending. I recommend that readers… more
Last evening we published the letter we sent to 48 of Nebraska’s Senators about LB599. We also wanted to share a letter from one of our readers who contacted his own Senator, Colby Coash (District 27), who voted for LB599 in the first two rounds. Even IF you read this article after the third round… more
GiN's letter to all NE Senators regarding LB599 - the effort to expand Medicaid benefits to illegal immigrants and others deemed ineligible by the Federal government. more
In recent days, the Lincoln-Journal Star has published what amounts to a one-two punch in the form of articles intended to push a bill expanding Nebraska’s Medicaid program to provide coverage for prenatal care. Senator Kathy Campbell, a Republican, embarked on this crusade to expand Medicaid well over two years ago when some 1600 pregnant… more
“The essence of Government is power; and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse.” ~ James Madison, 1829 So, all quiet on the health care front? Definitely not. There were recent news reports about the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to consolidate and hear several health care law… more
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No! Wait… Is that a football? No, but it is brown. And it is oblong. Hey, it’s smoking! Wait! It’s a hot potato! It’s America’s new national past time and no, sorry, Husker fans, it is not football. It’s called Pipeline Hot Potato. So, let’s play! Let’s meet our… more
Nebraska was one of only fourteen states to see the successful passage of a State Sovereignty Resolution in the two year period 2009 – 2010, while well over thirty states had resolutions. In other words, the passage of the Nebraska resolution on April 13, 20101 , was no small thing. It took an organized effort… more
I’ve received some feedback on the most recent article published here “TransCanada Trojan Horse: Keystone XL Pipeline Will Increase Gas Prices“. That feedback confirms my earlier concerns about the use of environmentalist rhetoric in the pipeline project debate. That feedback also confirms that anyone else interested in running for Miss Popularity in the state need… more
As we’ve noted here, more than once, our primary interest in the Keystone XL pipeline project was the conduct of Nebraska’s elected officials at both the state and federal levels, and serious concerns about property rights. We did not have an overall position on the project and we did not recommend any particular action. Our… more