When Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback first offered his plan to revive the Kansas economy, he famously called it a “real live experiment” in tax and spending policy.

All Kansans know Brownback’s experiment failed. Dramatically cutting business taxes while raising other taxes for consumers did virtually nothing to increase employment relative to other states.

It did leave state lawmakers struggling to cover massive budget deficits — work that continues even now and won’t end for another generation.

But tax cuts were only one half of the Brownback experiment. Aided by conservatives in the Legislature, Kansas eviscerated the state’s social safety net: privatizing Medicaid, imposing new restrictions on welfare benefits, insisting on a tough food stamp work requirement.

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