Kansas Guv Kelly Threatens Political Payback Amid Medicaid Expansion Effort

The Guv is finished playing nice on this healthcare battle . . . Here arguments might or might not resonate as voters are rarely confronted with substantive issues about quality of life and spend most of their time listening to politicos rant about culture war issues.

Here's the game plan . . .

Governor Kelly faces leaders of GOP supermajorities whose priorities are to cut income taxes and rein in local property taxes, not to expand Medicaid.

But Kelly’s new plan includes hitting expansion-opposing Republicans hard later this year during races for legislative seats, an approach that cuts against years of self-branding as a bipartisan problem-solver who doesn’t care about politics.

“My previous approach, which has always been to try to bring people together and work collaboratively and come up with consensus and then get good policy on the books — that hasn’t worked,” Kelly said during a recent interview.

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

A push to expand Medicaid has Kansas governor embracing politics and cutting against her brand

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is more aggressive and openly political in pushing to expand Medicaid in Kansas as the Republican-controlled Legislature prepares to open its annual session.