Democrats say they want the governor to call a special session of the Legislature this fall to focus on job creation. However, Governor Scott Walker says there would have to be an agreement in both the Democratic-controlled Senate and Republican-controlled Assembly before he would think about calling lawmakers back to the Capitol.
As of right now, Walker says he does not expect such an agreement to be reached before the end of the year and there would be little point in calling the Legislature back to “sit around and fight for a couple of weeks.”
Democrats regained a majority in the state Senate following a recall victory in the 21st District. The new majority is calling for a special session to focus on job creation, but Governor Walker says having lawmakers come back to work would require a consensus with Republicans that still control the Assembly.
The governor says his focus right now is on efforts to encourage job growth without legislative approval, such as grants through the Wisconsin Covenant Foundation that will be used to train manufacturing workers. Walker says he has not talked to legislative leaders about calling them back for a special session.
With an election coming up in November, the governor says the attention of most lawmakers is back in their districts right now. Half of the seats in the Senate and all of the Assembly will be on the ballot later this fall.
AUDIO: Andrew Beckett reports (1:02)