Why did Greitens hitch himself to the Ryan-Trump-care bandwagon when it was already in flames?

A couple of days before the Ryan-Trump “repeal and replace” bill went up in flames, Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens signed a letter urging Congress to pass it.

Bad move, governor. You are now on record supporting a piece of legislation that would have caused 24 million Americans to lose health insurance. Based on at least one study, that number would have included more than half a million Missourians.

Kansas’ governor signed the same letter. But that was to be expected: any unworkable, mean-spirited idea that benefits the rich at the expense of everybody else is pretty much the Bat-Signal for Sam “Where do I sign?” Brownback.

Being a first-term governor, Greitens’ proclivities aren’t as well known. But his signature on the letter, rubber-stamped by Brownback and six other Republican governors, tells us a lot.

For starters, Greitens is ready to gut Missouri’s Medicaid system. He says so in the missive, which lauds the Ryan-Trump bill for converting Medicaid into limited block grants to states and empowering states to enact work requirements for impoverished people needed health care. The letter also says the Affordable Care Act “has expanded Medicaid in a way that diverts resources away from the program’s core mission.” How would he or Brownback know? Their legislatures have refused to expand Medicaid, even though taxpayers in both states are sending money to Washington so that smarter states can take advantage of the offer.

Also, Greitens is remarkably ignorant about health care. “It’s time to repeal Obamacare now,” he said on his Facebook page on Friday, shortly before Republicans in D.C. decided not to repeal Obamacare anytime soon. “We must provide relief for families losing their doctors, coverage and choices, all the while premiums are skyrocketing.”

No, all of those things are what will happen if Congress did repeal Obamacare. And if Greitens is worried about rising insurance premiums, studies show that rates are 7 percent lower in states that have expanded Medicaid than in holdout states such as Missouri.

We also now know that Greitens’ fiery campaign rhetoric about new ideas and a new way forward was just so much smoke. Like Brownback, Greitens is quick to latch onto any flam-flam idea he thinks might be in vogue — even if it isn’t.

It’s also clear that Greitens — whose outsized political ambitions are no secret — thinks he can become the next Donald Trump by sucking up to the real Donald Trump. The governors’ letter is addressed to House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, but is also meant to provide sustenance to Trump, who called the failed repeal-and-replace bill “wonderful.”

And over the weekend, Greitens made yet another trip to Washington — his fourth since he was sworn in as governor in January. According to reports, Greitens expected to speak with Trump about Missouri’s priorities.

But wait a minute. Greitens flew to Washington in mid-February to meet with the president. And the two were scheduled to discuss Missouri’s priorities then. With Trump’s approval ratings flatlining, Greitens might be better off staying home and talking to Missourians about their priorities.

More likely, what’s under discussion on the East Coast are the priorities of two power-obsessed men — one who sits in the White House now, and one who is obsessed with getting there.