Where do we go from here?
President Trump has made it clear: there is a war on. No more federal money for Medicare or Medicaid. Health care for the elderly and related programs should now be the total financial responsibility of the states. This on top of previous cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, rural health programs, hospice care, child care — the list goes on.
New Hampshire House Deputy Majority leader, Joe Sweeney, has made it clear: “Let the voters see that we oppose income taxes now and forever.” It is more than obvious that New Hamsphire is already behind in properly funding education, infrastructure, mental health, prison conditions, staffing in numerous departments. Yet suppose that Trump’s proposal is adopted, and the funding of these vital programs is terminated— approximately 70% of state Medicaid funding presently comes from the federal government — where is that money going to come from? We already know it is the position of New Hampshire Republicans that “we don’t care how bad it gets. We don’t intend to do anything about it.”
Let’s hope that Trump doesn’t get the military budget he wants. Let’s hope Congress will continue to support necessary programs for the elderly and disabled here at home. But let’s hope also, that Republicans in the New Hampshire legislature will realize that there are many, many residents in desperate need of services that can be provided only with proper statewide governmental financial support.