Even as the federal number-crunchers are telling us that the recession is over, more bad economic news is coming to Missouri.

As my colleague Virginia Young reports today, Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon will be making more budget cuts today — probably at least $300 million and maybe more.

A comment from one state lawmaker in the story really struck me. Senate President Pro Tem Charlie Shields, R-St. Joseph, said: “The big places you go to get money are higher education and (elementary and secondary) education, but those are the untouchables.”

That’s because of Nixon’s pledge to keep funding for colleges stable.

I have a…

Like so many other states, Missouri will begin budget cuts.

While the budget cuts will start at some of the state’s social services programs, the Tour of Missouri, a bike tour that starts Sept. 7,  will be safe. According to the Post-Dispatch the bike tour costs $1.5 million, a fraction of the $60 million in cuts that Nixon is studying.

The Post-Dispatch also reported that $475,000 will be cut from domestic violence programs and $2.25 million from Health Care centers for low income families.

The Missouri Water Patrol, for instance, faces the possibility of scaling back patrols on some of the state’s rivers and…