* 10:43 am - A Cook County judge has ruled against the Governor’s authority to expand health care programs without legislative approval.
More in a bit.
Background here.
* 10:55 am - The judge’s ruling can be downloaded by clicking here.
* 11:02 am - The judge ruled that the arguments against the governor’s Family Care expansion have a likelihood of succeeding at trial. So, a preliminary injunction was granted “based on the failure to abide by the elibility criteria required by law,” according to the judge. A similar argument against the expansion of the breast and cervical cancer screening program was denied.
* 11:05 am - This is gonna be a mess. The administration went ahead and enrolled a bunch of people in the expanded Family Care program (the governor expanded eligibility from 185 up to 400 percent of the poverty level) last year. What’s going to happen to those people now? We don’t have an answer from the guv’s office yet, but I’m sure he’ll blame somebody else.
* 11:23 am - What the judge essentially ruled is that the administration claimed it had the authority under existing state laws to expand the Family Care program. The judge claimed that they followed some laws, but not one in particular. So, he didn’t have to rule on the main argument - that the governor exceeded his authority to implement a program without an appropriation or specific legislative approval - because the administration’s new and expanded Family Care program didn’t meet the federal TANF requirements. It’s a punt, but the same result is reached.
* 11:30 am - From the Tribbies…
[Cook County Judge James Epstein] also placed a stay on the order for seven days in order to allow the governor’s lawyers to review the order and perhaps appeal. The ruling comes in a lawsuit seeking to halt the expansion.
A state legislative panel has twice refused to approve rules for the expansion and lawmakers did not include funding in the state budget. But the administration contends it can grow the program anyway.
“We are clearly unhappy that he ruled on this basis,” said attorney Larry Blust, a private lawyer retained by the Blagojevich administration.
As he dashed into the governor’s office at the Thompson Center to consult with his client, Blust added, “We’ll decide in the next seven days what we are going to be doing about it.”
* 12:24 pm - Richard Caro, the lawyer who initially brought the lawsuit, just told me that the administration is “free to amend the regulation to comply” with the judge’s ruling. However, he said, they’d be right back in front of the judge to get approval and the judge could open up all those other issues - including the constitutionality of the governor’s move - that the judge was able to ignore because the guv didn’t follow the TANF requirements.
*** 12:52 pm *** Another judge, another legal setback for the governor…
Judge Leo Zappa today said Senate President Emil Jones should be added as a defendant to a lawsuit over Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s power to set the date and time of special sessions.
Although he didn’t make a ruling today, Zappa strongly indicated he will do that in another week, despite objections from Blagojevich’s lawyer.
“What’s good for the goose is good for the gander,” Zappa said. “If the governor has the right to set the date and time, it will have as much impact for senators who do not show up as representatives.”
Blagojevich sued House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, because Madigan did not have the House meet in special session at the exact date and time set by the governor. The lawsuit did not name Jones, a Blagojevich ally, as an defendant.
That’s a pretty funny development.
*** 12:57 pm *** Stu Levine is finished testifying, at least for now…
“You do not need to return unless you receive further notice,” U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve told [Levine] after 25 minutes of questioning.
*** 1:03 pm *** From the governor’s office…
“The Court’s decision affirms the Governor’s authority to expand existing healthcare programs without new legislation. We’re delighted by the Court’s ruling on the Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program. The Court upheld the Governor’s authority to provide all uninsured women access to mammograms and other cancer screenings. This makes Illinois the only state in the country to ensure all women have access to the cancer screenings and treatment they need.
“We are also encouraged by the Court’s ruling on the Family Care program. The Court ruled that the statute which authorizes the expansion of Family Care requires an additional provision that the people enrolled be employed or seeking work. We believe most, if not all, enrollees currently meet this requirement. We intend to address the issue raised by the Court so we can continue to protect health coverage for people in Family Care.”
Remember, though, that the judge enjoined the administration from carrying out the new rule and stopped Comptroller Hynes from authorizing any payments.
*** 1:10 pm *** From the Tribbies…
Gov. Rod Blagojevich has repeatedly deflected questions about the federal corruption trial of his former top fundraiser Antoin “Tony” Rezko, often suggesting he’s too busy to follow details of the case.
Yet on Monday, Blagojevich abandoned that posture to take a shot at Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn, who has been pushing a recall measure to give voters the option of removing the governor.
Asked about the Rezko trial, Blagojevich noted that Quinn’s name arose in testimony earlier in the day.
“I didn’t know Pat Quinn had dinner with Stuart Levine and Tony Rezko at his house until I learned that today,” Blagojevich said.
*** 1:17 pm *** Man, when it rains it pours. More bad news for the guv…
The clout-heavy private school that mistakenly got $1 million from Gov. Blagojevich has admitted for the first time that one of its officials had a felony conviction — a disclosure that contradicts its earlier claims and could be grounds for the state to get its money back.