Holden offers credible plan for state budget

To the editor:

I want to congratulate Gov. Bob Holden on his plan for balancing our budget. He has developed a credible plan that solves the problem without doing too much harm to our most needy citizens. I have read in the papers where Kentucky has released prisoners to balance its budget, while Arkansas has had to close some of its public schools one day a week. In California, the governor has called for reductions in health-care spending that will deny service to hundreds of thousands needy recipients. Those ideas are not right for Missouri. I believe Holden has come up with a plan that is right for Missouri, and I want to thank him for that.

CARL W. PATTERSON

Cape Girardeau