They're going to do whatever they want

Remember that "leverage" some people thought John Bel had going into the special session?  Yeah, well, not everyone agrees that is real.

House Appropriations Committee chairman Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, said he wants to reopen the discussion about health care spending and whether sheriffs can absorb a major reduction in the money they're provided to house state prisoners and parole violators.

Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, and Senate leaders are not interested in having that debate again. The governor's official call for the special session released last week restricted discussion of budget changes to technical adjustments, without allowing for a re-vote on the spending plan itself.

There is a disagreement about whether the governor's call restricts the Legislature from voting on a reworked budget though. Because the technical change to the budget bill has been included in the call for the special session, the entire budget bill is open for debate, according to Henry.

"You can't open up a section of a bill. It is all of it or nothing," Henry said. "We confirmed that with the (House) clerk."

I'm not sure if opening the whole budget back up for debate means we lose the one the Governor has already signed (thus sending us back on the path to a shutdown.) It probably doesn't. But it does greatly increase the workload for the new session which would mean there's a much better chance that nothing gets accomplished.  And, like we said earlier in the week, Republicans don't care if anything gets funded at all. So getting nothing accomplished would suit them just fine.