Heidi Alexander: “If I may say in response to the question and comment from the Senator from Kentucky, this country was created by States…”

“If I may say in response to the question and comment from the Senator from Kentucky, this country was created by States, and now has created a central government of limited powers. The central government makes the States the wards of the central government. In the State of Tennessee this year--I believe for the first time-- more than half the dollars in the State budget come from the Federal Government. In addition to the dollars coming from Washington, the rules are coming from Washington. So the Governor of Kentucky or New Hampshire or Tennessee is trying to say: Medicaid spending is out of control. It is ruining our public colleges and universities because we have no money left for them, so we want to change the eligibility. That has been the case during the last 10 years. We have had Medicaid spending going up in the States by 70 or 80 percent over a 7- or 8-year period of time, and funding for public universities at a low level with tuitions, therefore, going way up. So the Governor is saying: Whoa, let's do something about Medicaid. Then we passed a bill and said to the Governors: Don't you change Medicaid. You are not allowed, if you take this money, to save any money in Medicaid. So spending for Medicaid goes up because we require it to go up, and that means tuitions in Kentucky, New Hampshire, Tennessee, California, and all across this country are going to be higher because of legislation like we are considering today.”