Post by Logan on Mar 3, 2016 5:49:40 GMT -6
Democrats failed to override Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner's veto of a bill to free up $721 million for community colleges and scholarships for low-income students in the latest political skirmish at the Capitol ahead of the March 15 primary election.
While the Senate easily voted to reject Rauner's veto, the effort came up two voters short in the House, where Democratic Speaker Michael Madigan has previously said he no longer has a working supermajority he can rely on to buck the governor.
Still, the roll call has some political benefits for Madigan, who also is chairman of the state Democratic Party, because he once again got Republicans on the record as voting against higher education funding. That allows his Democratic candidates to send out election-year mailers highlighting their support.
After the vote, Rauner issued a statement chastising lawmakers for wasting time "with a political vote that was never going to pass."
Read more: www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-bruce-rauner-democrats-college-funding-veto-met-20160302-story.html
While the Senate easily voted to reject Rauner's veto, the effort came up two voters short in the House, where Democratic Speaker Michael Madigan has previously said he no longer has a working supermajority he can rely on to buck the governor.
Still, the roll call has some political benefits for Madigan, who also is chairman of the state Democratic Party, because he once again got Republicans on the record as voting against higher education funding. That allows his Democratic candidates to send out election-year mailers highlighting their support.
After the vote, Rauner issued a statement chastising lawmakers for wasting time "with a political vote that was never going to pass."
Read more: www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-bruce-rauner-democrats-college-funding-veto-met-20160302-story.html