Morning Spin: Rauner Tries to Raise Pressure on Republican Budget Plan
ICPR’s forum “Illinois Budget: Defining & Funding the Essential Priorities” is mentioned in this article
via Chicago Tribune
*Good luck with that: Rank-and-file lawmakers say it’s up to them to find a way to break the budget impasse, saying they can no longer wait for Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democratic legislative leaders to cut a deal.
Speaking at a budget forum hosted by the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, legislators argued they must meet to craft their own plan that could eventually win enough support to pass.
“I’ve been to meetings, I’ve been in meetings with a few of the folks sitting here, and we want to talk. We need to just sit down and hammer out an agreement and give it to our leaders and say, ‘this is it,’” said Rep. Will Davis, D-Homewood. “So at the very least, the people we represent know we’re working, we’re tying to do something, absent of the governor and absent of the speaker, but that members are trying to move something forward.”
Rauner and all four legislative leaders have not met since late last year, though Rauner argues those closed-door gatherings are unlikely to bring a deal. Rauner argues he must negotiate with Speaker Michael Madigan one-on-one. That meeting has yet to happen, and lawmakers are doubtful either man will blink.
“One thing I’m going to do, and I know most of the people sitting at this table are doing, is talk among legislators, where we can come together and look at those areas of agreement and move ideas forward to the governor and to the speaker and to the president of the Senate,” said Rep. Robert Pritchard, R-Hinckley. “So by working together, building a coalition of legislators, if you will, and then moving forward to the speaker and saying it’s time to move, and putting pressure on the governor and the speaker, I think we can get a resolution before June.” (Celeste Bott)
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