The day before a special session of the Illinois legislature, Governor Bruce Rauner made a televised address pleading for unity and compromise in trying to pass the state's first budget in three years. The governor called Illinois lawmakers back to Springfield for a 10-day special session set to begin Wednesday as the state’s two-year budget impasse continues. "Republicans in the General Assembly have laid out a compromise budget plan that I can sign,” Rauner said in a video announcing the special session, noting, "It is a true compromise – and one I hope the majority in the General Assembly will accept.” Illinois has been without a budget for two years, and if a deal isn’t reached by the end of the fiscal year on June 30, then lawmakers are predicting massive cuts and potential shutdowns to help deal with the financial shortfall. With nearly $15 billion in unpaid bills and a fiscal crisis never before...(Read Full Post)