It has looked to me for a very long time that House Speaker Michael Madigan has been waiting for an existential state crisis to force Gov. Bruce Rauner to back completely away from his anti-union, pro-business Turnaround Agenda so that they can pass a "clean" state budget.

 

As you surely know by now, the governor won't agree to a budget deal until he gets things like changes to workers' compensation insurance laws and reductions of collective bargaining rights for government union members.

 

Whether that crisis comes after the Illinois Supreme Court rules that state workers cannot be paid without an appropriation, or whether it's when schools and/or universities don't open on time, or if Republicans threaten to break ranks on overrides of the governor's appropriations vetoes (particularly on higher education funding), or a local mayor shuts off the water or sewer access to an important state facility, like a prison, I don't know. Nobody does.

 

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