In a recent speech, John Kasich angrily reprimanded the Ohio Chamber of Commerce for opposing his failed plan to lower income taxes by raising sales taxes on most services in the state. He reamed the chamber with this colorful one-liner: Hire every lobbyist you can and make sure you preserve what it is that you get by demanding, “Don’t tax me, tax the guy behind the tree.” This catchy rhyme was first coined in 1975 by Louisiana Senator Russell B. Long, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, who observed that “tax reform” simply meant “taxing someone else.” Long made this point when he borrowed a children’s song, where a child tells Mister Bear to “don’t catch me- catch that fellow behind that tree,” and changed the lyrics to say, “Don’t tax you, don’t tax me, tax the fellow behind that tree.”

It’s ludicrous that Kasich had the nerve to throw that particular rhyme at the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, because Long’s ditty is a fairly good representation of the governor’s budgetary and “tax reform” policies. Kasich’s drastic budget cuts to Ohio’s public schools brought about $1.3 billion in new school levies since May of 2011. Kasich’s extreme budget cuts to local governments necessitated a large number of recent levy requests to maintain public safety services. His failed plan for “tax reform” was to move from income taxes to consumption taxes, a scheme that would have overwhelmingly favored the wealthiest Ohioans, yet hurt the middle class. Governor Kasich’s whole attitude about taxation heartily resounds with, “Don’t tax me- tax the guy behind the tree!”

You may wonder, “Just who is that guy behind the tree?” The simple truth is that it’s YOU and ME.

Think.

Elephants have been getting the short end of the stick for years. Not only have they become the laughing stock of the animal world with a Disney cartoon elephant named “Dumbo,” but they’ve had to put up with a slew of really bad elephant jokes and riddles. To make matters worse, a famous cartoonist named Thomas Nast drew a political cartoon with a donkey wearing a lion’s skin to scare the other animals away- one of those other animals was an elephant, labeled “The Republican Vote,” and the elephant has been hopelessly stuck as the symbol for that conservative party ever since.

The Republican Party has gained much notoriety in recent years with initiatives that confirm that it’s out of touch with the majority of the American people. The only way the elephant species can get away from the GOP’s current bad press is to disassociate itself completely from the Republican Party, especially in Ohio where the House Republicans recently chose to turn down Medicaid Expansion. It’s clear to young and old alike that the characteristics of this gentle giant do not remotely resemble the traits of that party of extremists.

Elephants are highly intelligent animals. Turning down Medicaid Expansion in Ohio was not a decision made by highly intelligent House Republicans. It would have brought over $20 billion in federal funding back to Ohio to pay for 100% of costs for newly eligible Ohioans for the first 3 years, gradually decreasing to 90% starting in 2020. Without the expansion, taxpayers will have to cover a $404 million loss in their state budget.

Elephants are social creatures that take care of one another. House Republicans voted against Medicaid Expansion that would have extended coverage to over 275,000 needy Ohioans in the first two years. Families with health insurance would stay healthy by receiving regular preventive care, instead of seeking crisis care in hospital emergency rooms, as many of them will be forced to do now.

Elephants have an incredible memory. Ohio House Republicans do not. They forgot that the Affordable Healthcare Act, also known as ObamaCare, was signed into law in 2010, and the U.S. Supreme Court upheld that law in 2012. It’s the law of the land, no matter how many Tea Party threats are directed towards the Statehouse, and Medicaid Expansion is what the majority of Ohioans want and need. Republican lawmakers may have bad memories, but their constituents will never forget.

An analogy can be made using the following timeless example of a bad elephant joke. Q: What time is it when an elephant sits on the fence? A: Time to fix the fence! Ohio House Republicans should have gotten “off the fence” and complied with Medicaid Expansion for those among us who are in need. Rest assured, Ohio voters will unite to “fix the fence” the next time those officials are up for re-election.

Think.

By Catherine Candisky

The Columbus Dispatch

Sunday April 21, 2013 11:40 AM

Ohio taxpayers provide health coverage to tens of thousands of workers, many employed by companies that have received millions in state-sponsored tax credits, grants and loans for job creation and development.

According to state officials, Medicaid covers 141,182 workers and their dependents from the 50 companies with the highest enrollment in the program.That’s a 27 percent increase from 2007, when the state first released such data.

While such tax breaks typically relate to the creation of higher-paying jobs or to keep companies in Ohio, critics say the corporations’ reliance on public support to assist their low-wage workers raises questions about Ohio’s investments in economic development. Central Ohio-based Wendy’s has nearly 5,700 employees and their dependents insured through the state’s Medicaid program, according to Ohio’s Office of Medical Assistance.

The fast-food chain also recently got a tax credit from the state worth up to $3.9 million after promising to create 223 jobs, Department of Development records show.

And when Bob Evans was looking to relocate its headquarters two years ago, the company received an incentive package from the state that included a research-and-development investment loan of $3 million and tax credits for job creation and research and development totaling nearly $2.5 million. The restaurant chain and food company has more than 5,000 workers and dependents on Medicaid.

Corporate officials with Wendy’s and Bob Evans did not return messages seeking comment.“These multimillion-dollar companies are getting tax breaks and forcing their employees to use public assistance,” said Rep. Robert F. Hagan, D-Youngstown. “They should cover their employees, or they shouldn’t be asking for help.”

Hagan has long sought disclosure of employer data on Medicaid recipients to “start a conversation on how the companies were shifting their responsibilities to taxpayers. You can’t pay someone nine or 10 bucks an hour and expect them to pay for health care.”

But Katie Sabatino, spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Development, said, “These deals involve headquarter relocations and expansions in an effort to ensure companies grow, thrive and create jobs in Ohio. Job-creation deals take into account the number of full-time jobs being created, the average hourly wage, and the investment being made by the company.”

Medicaid and other health benefits are not a factor. The employees qualify for assistance because they don’t earn a lot, their employer might not offer health-care coverage, or workers might not be able to afford their share of the benefit.

Wal-Mart, which consistently tops the list, has 17,679 Ohio employees covered by Medicaid, followed by McDonalds with 14,056.

They were followed by three Ohio-based companies: Kroger, Wendy’s and Bob Evans with a combined 17,421 workers on Medicaid.

Most of the companies are restaurants, retail outlets such as Target and Macy’s, and hospitals and health-care providers, including the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals.Medicaid has become a sticking point in state budget talks with Gov. John Kasich wanting to expand the program to 275,000 more people in the state using $13 billion from the federal government.

The House passed a budget on Thursday that did not include the expansion but left doors open to revamp the state-federal health-care program to give more low-income Ohioans medical coverage.

Medicaid currently covers parents with incomes up to 90 percent of the federal poverty level, $21,195 a year for a family of four, and children living in a household with income up to 200 percent of the poverty level. That’s a family income of about $47,000 a year.

Taxpayers spend on average about $5,700 a year to cover a parent on Medicaid and $2,600 annually for a child, state officials say.

Ohio’s safety-net services — Medicaid, food stamps, cash assistance — “shouldn’t have to be used in significant ways by multimillion-dollar companies getting tax breaks,” said Zach Schiller, spokesman for Policy Matters Ohio.

“They should be able to adequately pay their employees.”

ccandisky@dispatch.com

@ccandisky