Quinn Vetos Part Of Budget, Lawmakers Ditch Springfield

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Jul 1, 2009 7:40PM

Following up on our earlier post about the budget crisis facing the state, Gov. Pat Quinn today announced he was vetoing part of the budget that had be presented him by the state assembly. The part Quinn vetoed dealt with social services, calling the fight to hold out for more funding via his budget and tax increases was a "fight worth fighting for." Per the Tribune:

...Quinn vetoed part of that budget, saying it only funded services for the poor and disabled at 50 percent of what he wanted.

This part of the budget does not serve the needs of people who "have no lobbyist" or "friends in high places," said Quinn, sounding the same type of populist note favored by his predecessor, indicted ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Ouch.

Meanwhile, state lawmakers will return to Springfield to take up the budget battle again on July 14. That's just one day before the July 15th deadline on which there won't be money to pay state employees. As for why lawmakers are waiting two weeks before returning to take up the budget issues, Madigan spokesman Steve Brown said, "We surveyed members and tried to figure out when their schedules would allow them to come back, with the least amount of disruption to their lives. The president and the speaker are trying to treat members as if they're human beings and they have their own lives." No word on what Madigan, Cullerton, or Quinn thought of the disruption of the lives of state employees who won't be receiving paychecks or the hundreds of thousands who'll be affected by the cuts in social services.