* If you weren’t at yesterday’s Senate Executive Committee, you missed a heckuva show…

What some lawmakers referred to as “grade-school antics” Wednesday likely squashed voters’ chances to choose whether they want the ability to recall the governor and other statewide elected officials.

Amid shushing and yelling “one at a time” — one too many times — state Sen. Ira Silverstein gave up trying to control his committee. A hearing devoted to recall devolved into lawmakers talking over each other and name-calling.

“We’re senators here. We’re not kindergartners here,” said Silverstein, a Chicago Democrat and chairman of the Senate Executive Committee.

* Things got off to a bad start…

Before the Senate Executive Committee was called to order, Quinn approached Trotter to shake hands and said the South Side lawmaker refused the gesture and added, “I already took a bath today.” Trotter did not dispute that account later.

* And went downhill from there…

The Senate president demanded an apology from Quinn, who has toured the state recently urging the Senate not to prevent voters from deciding about recall.

“For you to go out, use taxpayers’ money and slander the Illinois Senate, I resent that,” Jones said.

Quinn refused.

“This Senate has to have the fortitude not to duck the issue,” Quinn said.

“We do not need a lecture from you,” Jones bristled in response.

* And didn’t let up for two solid hours…

Sen. Iris Martinez (D-Chicago) and Sen. Rickey Hendon (D-Chicago) joined in, scolding Franks for alleged transgressions that seemed to have little to do with the legislation at hand.

The suburban legislator was needled for supporting a Martinez opponent in the February primary, backing Hillary Clinton over native son Barack Obama in the race for the White House and having a “bad hairdo.”

* In the end, nothing happened…

Jones and other top Senate Democrats supported Trotter when he announced that, as the bill’s Senate sponsor, he had decided not to ask for a committee vote on it. Instead, he said, he would come back later with amendatory language to “make it better.” […]

“It was whitewash, it was a travesty, they ought to be ashamed of themselves,” Franks said after the committee hearing. “I was concerned that would happen, when a person who did not support the bill controlled the bill, that he would try to kill it, and that’s exactly what he did today.”

* The Tribune counted noses and had the best analysis in the MSM of why the SDems never called the measure for a vote…

After the hearing, [Senate GOP Leader Frank Watson] announced that he and the four other Republican committee members were prepared to vote for the measure. [Exec Committee Chairman Ira Silverstein] and Senate Majority Leader Debbie Halvorson (D-Crete) also told the Tribune they were going to vote for it, indicating there would have been at least seven votes in favor—enough to move the proposal to the Senate.

Senate Republicans said Democrats were doing Blagojevich a favor by delaying action Wednesday. “It’s all about protecting the governor,” Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson (R-Greenville) said.

* But not everything went the governor’s way during yesterday’s hearing…

Just a day after the Blagojevich administration proposed a reorganization of nearly two dozen state agencies and authorities, the Senate Executive Committee decisively turned thumbs-down on the idea.

By a 10-3 vote, the committee Wednesday told the administration no. The full Senate must also reject the plan, but the committee vote indicates the idea has little support, even among Democrats.

“You cannot guarantee there won’t be a bureaucratic mess,” said Sen. Ira Silverstein, D-Chicago. “I’m concerned about the loss of jobs, the loss of services. I have a lot of problems with this.”

* More Senate and recall stuff…

* Blagojevich allies stall recall-election bill

* Recall a bad idea for a bad guv: Hinz

* Panel approves ‘pay to play’ measure

* Senate rejects smoking exemption for casinos