make it happen

… Across the country, states were forced to make massive budget cuts in 2010, in order to balance budgets that have been running historic deficits. Collectively, the states' deficits came in at $174 billion last year; the National Conference of State Legislatures estimates the collective budget gap for 2011 at $89 billion. The cuts included a lot of blunt, across-the-board tactics like California's furloughs because they could be implemented quickly. “ … But core programs have been cut, as well — quite deeply in many states. The pain has reached nearly every corner of government, including higher education, corrections, K-12 education and Medicaid reimbursement rates to providers — anything states can slash without jeopardizing their eligibility for federal stimulus funding. And more cuts may be imminent, especially for the 30 states that balanced their books in anticipation of $24 billion in additional federal Medicaid assistance that appears increasingly tenuous.

Senate Democrats and Republicans are focused on gradually phasing out increased federal Medicaid payments to states to reach a deal on a tax extenders package. The two parties have wrangled over the bill for over eight weeks, with Republicans balking at the cost of the package. The Senate failed to move forward on a version of the bill last week that cost $118 billion and added approximately $60 billion to the deficit.

Sens. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, are under pressure to break ranks with their party and help pass a jobs bill that would extend unemployment benefits. AFSCME’s Blaine Rummel discusses.