Another not-so-special Springfield session

There are no masses of protesters clogging the Capitol today as lawmakers head into session with the budget year counting down its final days and unknown misery possibly awaiting next week if nothing's done. The general assumption is lawmakers will leave today and be back sometime next week, pressing any potential budget deal/tax hike right up against the Wednesday start of a new budget year.

So far Gov. Pat Quinn has rejected the idea of a temporary budget to keep government running through July.
So far, lawmakers haven't sent him the only half-funded budget they approved for the coming year. One year they waited until the last minutes of the 11th hour to send then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich the budget, in effect daring him to reject it only minutes before it took effect.

Anyway, here's something a little different.

This is ...

A. House Speaker Michael Madigan's new spokesman describing statehouse events
B. A statehouse reporter possibly on the verge of cracking after 6 years of covering special sessions
C. Palatine Republican Matt Murphy's campaign song for governor

Related ...

And here's the opening statement from Senate President John Cullerton's state-of-budget-talks news conference yesterday.