State lawmakers are returning to Springfield this week.

The two-week veto session was already on the books for legislators, but now it comes on the heels of former President Donald Trump’s election win. Democratic leaders — who kept their veto-proof majorities in both the state House and state Senate — are discussing what, if any, actions the state may take to “shore up” protections ahead of a second Trump presidency. 

Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch joined “Chicago Tonight” to talk about where things go from here.

On Illinois’ priorities following the election:

Though Illinois Democrats all won reelection in the state, the outcome for the presidential race was less successful. Welch said although it’s bittersweet to see Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign end, as a state, Illinois has planned ahead.

“We have said every time we stand up on the floor and fight for certain bills, that we couldn't predict what was going to happen in 2024,” Welch said. “We needed to make sure that we protected the values of Illinois. And so we’ve done that when it comes to workers’ rights and women’s rights and LGBTQ+ rights and the climate. We’ve done a lot of work on some very important things, and what we do know is what Donald Trump has said he will do.”

On potentially pushing against an abortion ban:

An increasing number of people have come to Illinois in search of abortion care in the last two years. As talk of a federal abortion ban under Trump’s administration continues, Welch said Illinois will continue to strengthen reproductive rights. An amendment to enshrine abortion as a right in the state constitution is not off the table, Welch said.

“That’s certainly one of the things that we’ve talked about even before Donald Trump was elected last Tuesday. I think that has to be a serious part of any conversation that we have going forward. You know, especially when we see how successful it was on the ballot last Tuesday.”

On Illinois’ assault weapons ban:

A federal judge on Friday issued a permanent injunction against the state’s so-called assault weapons ban, calling it an “unconstitutional affront to the Second Amendment.” Welch said Democrats are confident appeals will be successful. There would be cause for concern if the issue reaches the Supreme Court. 

“I certainly believe that we have to be concerned because of the current makeup of the court,” Welch said. “We have to be concerned because the president-elect has told us his position on the issues, but we believe that our lawyers advised us properly, that we got it right and that it would meet constitutional muster…. If they overturn our ban on assault weapons, I believe it would be purely partisan in nature.”

On balancing the state budget:

Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s budget office released its five-year projection for the state, predicting a shortfall of more than $3 billion for the coming fiscal year, which starts July 1. As budget discussions begin, Republican leaders said in a press conference they are not being included in the planning process.

“Our budget team does a fantastic job,” state Senate leader John Curran (R-Lemont) said. “And if it was a Senate-only budget, we would have had a bipartisan budget. So the Senate Democrats, Senate Republicans worked in a very collaborative manner. It was a matter of getting the House and the governor to buy into a bipartisan approach.”

Welch disagreed with Curran’s claim, saying the state passed balanced budgets that support the values of all Illinoisians.

“We passed balanced budgets since I’ve been speaker that take care of the entire state,” Welch said. “Democratic districts, Republican districts, they’ve been balanced. They’ve upgraded our credit ratings. There have been budgets that we can all be proud of.”