FORGET THE FACTS–IT’S THE MORALITY TALE THAT COUNTS

The News’ Sherry Jacobson delivers her usual warm, sloppy kiss this morning to Ron Anderson, head of Parkland Hospital, for achieving a $40 million surplus, mostly due to increased federal funding. But who really deserves the credit?

On August 24, 2004, Ms. Jacobson wrote a story in which Parkland administrators, including Ron Anderson, poo-pooed the idea of getting more federal money. They were campaigning then for higher local taxes. It was the County Commissioners who insisted that the federal funding should be sought:

“We’ve got a duty here to …to protect the local taxpayers,” said County Judge Margaret Keliher, who leads the court. “But I want to be sure we’re getting the federal dollars we’ve already paid…”

In fact, before County Commissioners appointed a new board of (mainly) businessmen to strengthen Parkland’s mangement systems, the hospital under Ron Anderson was habitually shortchanged by the federal government–and Anderson did little or nothing about it.

But the facts don’t matter. As long as Parkland is Sherry Jacobson’s beat, every good thing that happens is because of Ron Anderson and every bad thing that happens is because of a stingy Commissioners Court that is unwilling to raise taxes to care for the poor. That’s the storyline, and the News is sticking with it.