Cullerton, Madigan Refuse to Send Gov. Rauner Education Bill

Even more editorial boards are slamming John Cullerton, Mike Madigan and the Chicago Machine for holding schoolchildren hostage. They’re refusing to send Governor Rauner an education funding bill that passed two months ago.

From the Chicago Tribune editorial board:
Springfield is an orgy of deplorable these days. The inaction, the dysfunction, the empty chairs in the House and Senate — a disgrace. Of the 118 members of the Illinois House earning full-time salaries for part-time jobs, 32 did not show up for the start of Thursday’s special session. And there were dozens of empty desks in the Senate, a chamber that doesn’t take daily attendance. Lucky for those hard-to-track senators playing hooky.

Then both chambers adjourned within minutes of convening, sabotaging a rightfully called special session to address a serious issue for schoolchildren and their families. But because Cullerton and Madigan signaled it was OK for their members to blow it off, many did.

Let’s get a few things straight, given that legislative leaders and lawmakers have difficulty navigating right vs. wrong. The right thing to do in a part-time government job is to show up for special sessions when the governor calls them. The right thing to do — yes, you, Mr. Cullerton — is to quit playing games with a school funding bill legislators passed eight weeks ago and put it on Rauner’s desk. The right thing to do is then vote to accept or override whatever changes Rauner makes in an amendatory veto.

…Brinkmanship, pressure, lurching. The whole idea is to continue manufacturing — let’s copyright this phrase and not let him change the subject — “Cullerton’s School Crisis” ©2017.

From the Dispatch Argus editorial board:
Why wait, Mr. Cullerton? If you have not already done your duty, do it now and send the bill immediately so that, whatever happens next, lawmakers will have time to act to ensure that schools will open for the fall semester and stay that way.

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