54 Comments - JohnnyPyleDriver - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:11 pm: I don’t know how the process actually works, but is it the hope that they can hold this thing until the GA has just ONE chance to override the veto before schools fail to open? - ILPundit - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:15 pm: Senate comes in, opens full debate on Trotters motion to reconsider vote. Long debate for the media, motion fails, bill is sent to the Governor. Therefore, special session has taken action as demanded by governor enabling schools to be funded. Governor vetoes, looks stupid for vetoing legislation he asked to pass. - Chicago 20 - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:16 pm: I’m thinking that the Dems wanted the General Assembly in session to override Rauner’s veto. - Curl of the Burl - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:20 pm: You can blame Rauner all you want - and I get the angst against him on this and other issues like the budget situation - but he can do nothing with the bill until he actually HAS the bill. What is the hold up? If this issue and bill is SO important to Senator Manar and the Senate Dem caucus as a whole then SB1 should have been released earlier. The easy answer is that it SHOULD have been sent to the Governor during the last special circus - er session. Instead we now sit with maybe 4 or so weeks until school starts. Unreal. - King Louis XVI - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:20 pm: –Perhaps some of you can enlighten me.– - JohnnyPyleDriver - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:11 pm: –I don’t know how the process actually works, …– O.K. - East Central Illinois - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:22 pm: Send it to the Governor. I despise both sides on this issue, but c’mon . . . this is like a reaallly, reaaallllllyyyy, sllllloooooowwww game of chicken! - RNUG - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:24 pm: I think they are holding it until the choice is sign it or miss a school payment, since there may not be the votes to override a veto. High stakes bluff, gambling “Governor’s own” instead of “because Madigan”. May work because it is Cullerton holding it. - Piece of Work - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:25 pm: Man, I am glad my kids attended parochial schools. - Anon221 - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:26 pm: I posted this on another thread today: There was a good analysis on The 21st on what could happen if Rauner AVs, and if I’m not summarizing this correctly call me out with corrections, please. Senate sends SB1, Rauner AVs, not enough votes to override on 3/5ths = equivalent of a full veto, and No Money to schools because of the brick in the budget bills. Senate sends SB1, Rauner AVs, GA must then concur with AV with simple majority, simple majority fails, see final equation result above. So, if either of these scenarios takes place, what is Plan C? In my view, time is running out, and it is going to take the bipartisan 3/5ths vote on an override of an AV to get schools open and staying open for the entire school year. Otherwise the votes aren’t there for either party, and I really think Rauner is betting on that so the bill dies. ***** Other options if it dies, Barickman’s bill could be released. Would Rauner sign with no changes? Who knows. If Rauner AVs that one too, then we’re right back to the vote percentages. The Dems may be holding onto SB 1 as long as they can not to put Rauner in a corner, but to put the votes needed from the R’s in a corner to overcome the AV. I think it will be repeat of the budget bills, and will require R’s who are strong enough to keep bucking Rauner. If the schools in their districts don’t are used as leverage “Because Madigan”, I don’t think they are going to be able to stand the heat from parents, school boards, and superintendents. And, Rauner hasn’t offered them any monetary incentives lately to “buy” their votes. - C Ball - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:26 pm: My speculation is that Democrats are still sorting out whether they: 1) can override the amendatory veto — probably not; 2) should amend the bill to only partially achieve what Rauner wants, and send it back, forcing him to either veto the whole bill or accept their slight changes; 3) vote down the amended bill, thereby killing SB1, blocking school funding, and then blame Rauner for it all. - Muscular - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:28 pm: The situation might be that the Democrats currently do not have enough Republicans for an override. The Democrats can hold the bill until schools are about to close for a lack of funds. Some RINOs will then crawl to the Democrats agreeing to vote for the override like they did for the tax increase. The Democrats in this state know that Republicans will not stand behind their beliefs in the end. - Ducky LaMoore - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:33 pm: Yep. It is time to send this bill to the governor. Get it over with. Work something out in special session with actual republicans that actually care about schools opening and send it back to the governor. - Casual observer - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:35 pm: Timing: the state fair is coming up. Governors day should be a hoot after he vetoes money for education. - Chicago Cynic - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:35 pm: Sadly, there’s very little chance to override the AV if he actually has a way to remove Chicago. Lots of hatin’ of Chicago bein’ promoted by Gov. - Wednesday morning - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:38 pm: My suspicion is that, by demanding a bill and calling the legislature in to session, Rauner can berate the legislators for wastin’ hardworkin’ taxpayers’ money. That way he doesn’t have to act, he just gets to sit on the sidelines and trash-talk his opponents. Demandin’ and threatenin’ ain’t governin’. - Captain Ed Smith - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:40 pm: It is called lack of a quorum. - Oswego Willy - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:42 pm: ===High stakes bluff, gambling “Governor’s own” instead of “because Madigan”.=== I’m with - RNUG - It’s a high stakes game of slow played chicken. The override on the AV isn’t possible, the numbers aren’t there, so… now it’s seeing by waiting who can wear the jacket “best” for the other. - JohnnyPyleDriver - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:42 pm: KingLouis, looks like i’m at least in the ballpark while your comment appears to have added nothing. congrats - Anon - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:44 pm: At this point, nothing gained to continue holding the bill. Would look like legislature playing games; public would see the process as being gamed. So on with the show — with one side ultimately winnning and the other losing, or something in the middle. But postponing the outcome through a continued hold on the bill does nothing to advance the ultimate outcome at this point, and runs the risk of being poorly perceived by the public. - Enviro - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:48 pm: According to Cullerton:”I’d like the opportunity to make sure he knows what is in the proposal from the people who wrote it so he can make a rational decision.” This seems like a good reason to hold a meeting with the governor before releasing the bill. - 47th Ward - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:52 pm: I think Greg Hinz answered this in the previous thread: “If Republicans have different figures, they’re not disclosing them. Believe me, I’ve asked. Instead, they respond that Chicago wouldn’t need as much if it hadn’t mismanaged and undercontributed to the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund.” And this confusion is precisely why a leaders’ meeting would be so helpful (and why a special session would not). Governor Rauner refuses to put his cards on the table. He can rewrite the rules only as long as the other players allow it. In this case, for now, the Democrats led by John Cullerton, are not playing along until they get some basic questions answered, like what is in the AV language? - winners and losers - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:53 pm: “We’re going to continue to hold the bill until the governor comes to his senses and sits down and negotiates with us…” State Senator Andy Manar on Senate Bill 1, quoted in NPR story, July 17, by Dusty Rhodes - The Captain - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:53 pm: They’re holding it for political reasons, without a doubt. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t practical reasons for holding it as well that may help get a resolution sooner, I don’t think that’s their motivation, just saying they exist. Some bill (or collection of bills) has to pass to get schools funded. This is a vehicle that already has the constitutionally required majority. If it gets AV’d and either can’t be overridden or uses AV language beyond what the GA will accept as the Governor’s authority then it’s no longer a usable vehicle. If instead there was an agreed upon trailer bill, or if there was agreed upon AV language that the GA would be willing to accept, or if there was some package of other agreed upon measures that would make signing or overriding this bill more palatable it makes sense to give those options time. Something has to be enacted, why the rush to take this option off the table? - A guy - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:03 pm: It just doesn’t seem that complicated to me. Of the greatest deadly sins, the deadliest is Pride. And that’s where we are. There’s no strategy here. It’s just stubbornness all around. Nobody moves until the shame is beyond the pale. It’s absolutely stupid. Everyone has signaled what they’re going to do. So just Do It. - Ahoy! - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:04 pm: –So, why not just release the bill?– Because he will AV it and they don’t have the votes to override it. They don’t want to negotiate with the governor and they don’t want to give him the ability to amend it. - Rod - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:05 pm: President Cullerton does not want to force non-Chicago Democrat Senators to vote to override an amended bill that cuts some funding only for CPS. Given the animosity outside of Chicago to CPS scandals it becomes an easy campaign issue for Republicans. As I said before I thought President Cullerton should have forwarded the bill to the Governor and let the chips fall where they may on the over ride. This is not a portrait of courage on the part of President Cullerton. - PreK-12 Superintendent - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:09 pm: I think SB1 should be sent to the Governor. Both sides are saying their counterparts are “playing games with the children of Illinois.” The fact is both are playing games and the game won’t end until SB1 is sent to the Governor for his action. I’m tired of listening to the Governor’s misinformed rants and I’m tired of getting phone calls from Stand for Children to ask for my help to lobby for SB1. SB1 is not perfect. SB1124 is not perfect, and the governor’s plans surely are not anywhere from being perfect. However, it seems inevitable that they are going to have to find an answer somewhere in between the three. Let’s get this underway. I’m tired of waiting and have a lot of planning to do before mid-August. BTW….I am not scared of Madigan. I just need the government (legislators and governor) to do their job. - not again - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:10 pm: ==- Ducky LaMoore - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 3:33 pm: Yep. It is time to send this bill to the governor. Get it over with. Work something out in special session with actual republicans that actually care about schools opening and send it back to the governor.== My guess is that’s precisely why it’s being held. The republicans willing to break ranks and talk need to be able to say they had no choice. - Skeptic - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:11 pm: “They don’t want to negotiate with the governor” Then why is Cullerton asking to negotiate with the Governor? - Enviro - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:15 pm: President Cullerton is allowing more time for Governor Rauner to understand SB-1 the education funding bill. But it is becoming increasingly evident that Illinois lawmakers and the voters need more time to understand the bill. This may be politics but it is also commonsense. - Anonymous - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:23 pm: ==“They don’t want to negotiate with the governor” Then why is Cullerton asking to negotiate with the Governor?== Because….Madigan? - A Jack - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:30 pm: They are holding it in the hopes the Governor has an epiphany during the total eclipse. - Union Dues - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:32 pm: During the special session have the Repubs submit their bill for school funding and vote on it. Keep SB1 as backup. I bet the Repubs do not have a bill to submit. - Fredo Corleone - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:33 pm: Not sure why Cullerton, or Madigan, think the Governor will negotiate with them after they took him to the woodshed with the budget. Now Rauner wants his pound of flesh. The whole process is so sad. By the way, how is Madigan doing on those reforms he promised could happen after the budget was done. - Chicagonk - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:33 pm: At this point, Rauner is a wounded animal who has been cornered. If Rauner feels he has nothing to lose, Madigan and Cullerton lose the longer they hold the bill because Rauner will AV the bill regardless of when it hits his desk. - Hamlet's Ghost - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:39 pm: Reconvene in special session. Introduce a motion to reconsider SB1 and ask the governor to say what changes he will accept in order to sign without a veto. - Hamlet's Ghost - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:42 pm: I also like Union Dues idea at 4:32 Reconvene and ask the ILGOP to introduce a bill they believe is acceptable to the Governor. - Enviro - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 4:57 pm: Madigan offered a two year property tax freeze and gave in to a tier 3 for state pensions. But Rauner has rejected these reforms. That is about all he can expect from the Democrats now. - Mason born - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 5:06 pm: An Idea. How much does IL schools not opening direct affect economic productivity? Maybe the hope is a loss of revenue will make Rauners big money backers a bit skittish. They seem to be the only voice he hears. - Fredo Corleone - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 5:18 pm: I didn’t realize the budget included a two year property tax freeze. Thanks for pointing that out. - Not It - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 5:21 pm: It is an abuse of the legislative process to hold it for so long. - Anonymous - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 6:03 pm: The two year property tax freeze was passed in a separate bill…not sure if it was in the budget bill. - downstate commissioner - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 6:27 pm: As OW has said often: “Governors own.” The longer they hold it, the more likely is that Rauner will have to fold. One side will have to blink, and I don’t think that Mike Madigan knows how. Cullerton has been around Madigan for a long time and has learned a thing or two. Rauner had a chance to meet and settle things without the special session-now it’s on him - The Way I See It - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 6:29 pm: So what calamity for Chicago school kids and teachers would count as a “win” for Rauner? - Roman - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 6:30 pm: Isn’t all just semantics at this point? I doubt the votes are there for an override or for accepting Rauner’s amendatory language — whatever it ends up being. A new bill will have to be negotiated — likely by Andy Manar and downstate House Republicans. Let’s get on with it. - EVanstonian - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 6:36 pm: If its AV’d, the Gov looks like he is A. compromising vs his “like 90% of the bill but full veto anyway” talking point Dems have been using for weeks and B. when he doesn’t get 60 and 30 for his amendments and also is not overridden he can blame the Speaker and the members he controls for schools not opening. By not sending it now, Dems may be looking at any way to persuade the recalcitrant GOP 11 into going along with this too. - Sue - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 7:48 pm: And these sorry excuses for elected officials wonder why illinois continues to shrink- no one wants to move or expand their companies here - our housing pices lag the country and polling suggests most people given the choice want to move out. Maybe Madigan and Rauner can reach agreement that both of them should resign in exchange for passing a school funding bill - Cadillac - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 8:30 pm: ILGOP: “The tax hike jacket was a pretty good fit, let’s see how the CPS pension bailout fits.” Senate President: “The tax hike jacket is very uncomfortable. I don’t even want to try on the CPS pension bailout jacket”. - OneMan - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 9:16 pm: I don’t see how “Well CPS deserves money more than your SD” is going to play well in anywhere outside Chicago. Don’t see how giving the governor any sort of time before schools open to trumpet the fact he vetoed a bill that gives CPS more than the ‘Republican Plan’ does the Democrats any favors. - Touré's Latte - Monday, Jul 24, 17 @ 9:31 pm: What date is CPS supposed to start? Sept 6th? Can you say July 4th all over again? - Nieva - Tuesday, Jul 25, 17 @ 4:39 am: I believe they are living Groundhog Day. Until they start change things will be the same every day until finally, Bruce will begin to play the piano and start t o understand that Mike is in charge and he just needs to be available to sign whatever they send him without question. - Rabid - Tuesday, Jul 25, 17 @ 7:22 am: Crisis is opportunity, pounding a wedge between Chicago and Illinois is a rational discussion. The machine does not care if GOP schools are vetoed by lying Bruce - The Real Just Me - Tuesday, Jul 25, 17 @ 8:29 am: If Rauner wants to receive SB1 so bad, he should at least have Leader Brady file a motion for an immediate vote on the motion for reconsideration under Senate Rule 7-15. Is there any reason why such a motion for immediate vote has not already been filed? Parliamentary procedure is arcane and boring but at least it is doing something and not just whining. - Curl of the Burl - Tuesday, Jul 25, 17 @ 9:01 am: Union Dues - that is patently false. Senator Barickman has introduced SB 1124 (FA #3) and Rep. Pritchard has introduced HB 4069. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.