| Good Morning, Air conditioned for a much larger population, empty rooms at the State Capitol feel like meat lockers as the usual clientele – legislators, staff and lobbyists – haven’t been around to offset the chill. Many expected the Capitol to fill again when the votes were counted Tuesday morning on whether legislators should return to Baton Rouge on Saturday and attempt to override any one of the 29 vetoes Gov. John Bel Edwards issued during the recent regular session of the Legislature. Twenty-five senators and 39 representatives sent in ballots saying no session was necessary. The Senate’s 25 votes are more than the 20 ballots needed to cancel the override session. The House, with 39 ballots, came up far short of the 53 votes necessary to call off the session. But to override a veto requires two-thirds majorities in both chambers: 70 in the House and 26 in the Senate. Senate President Page Cortez, R-Lafayette, and House Speaker Clay Schexnayder, R-Gonzales, issued a letter saying the veto session would not be held. Cortez voted not to hold the session. Schexnayder didn't vote, which means he favored returning for an override session. Historically, a majority of representatives or senators have sent in ballots saying an override session was unnecessary. But this Republican majority Legislature has convened to override twice and turned bills rejected by the Democratic governor into law. Some of the GOP leadership didn't want to return to Baton Rouge, saying none of the vetoed bills had enough support for an override. Besides lawmakers had been in session pretty much non-stop between early February and mid-June. But a number of Republican lawmakers wanted to override some of the vetoes and they were urged along by conservative talk radio hosts, bloggers, and pressure groups that influence GOP lawmakers. Louisiana’s three abortion clinics were forced to stop providing abortions Friday after Orleans Civil District Court Judge Ethel Julien found that she didn’t have the authority to consider a legal challenge to the state’s trigger laws that ban most abortions in the state that were passed in anticipation of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. Julien ruled that the legal challenges should play out in Baton Rouge, where state laws are usually addressed. The upshot of her ruling was to bring the state’s strict ban back into effect – at least until the merits of the challenge are addressed in court. With qualifying for the Nov. 8 elections set for July 20 through July 24, much angling is taking place. The Rev. Tony Spell, a charismatic and controversial Pentecostal pastor of the Life Tabernacle Church in Central, said he is considering challenging the reelection of U.S. Sen. John N. Kennedy, R-Madisonville. While most national political handicappers see Kennedy’s reelection as a cake walk, those calculations have been made considering a slate of fairly weak Democratic contenders. He has a bulging campaign war chest, has a popularity rating above 50% and is a Republican running in a state where no Democrat has been elected to the U.S. Senate since 2008. The track gets muddier, thus changing the calculus, if Kennedy faces a contender to his political right. Still, Kennedy has collected $28.2 million, so far, during his campaign, compared to a total of about $2.2 million combined raised by Luke Mixon, Gary Chambers Jr. and Syrita Steib, his Democratic challengers. Kennedy raised $5.5 million during the most recent quarter, which covers contributions and expenditures through June 30. Some moderate Republicans and Democrats have been touting U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, the state’s senior Republican, as a potential candidate for governor next year. But Democrats want to recruit a Democrat. One possibility has recently emerged: New Orleans City Council President Helena Moreno, who says she has been getting pushed to run in the wake of the Supreme Court’s historic anti-abortion ruling but hasn’t committed to the race. As always, check throughout the day for the latest Louisiana political news at theadvocate.com/politics or NOLA.com/politics and on Twitter at @MarkBallardCNB, @tegbridges, @samkarlin, @WillSentell. Here are a dozen articles, commentaries and editorials that will catch you up for the week to come. One last item: Thank you to our subscribers. Your support means a great deal to us. If you're not yet a subscriber, we’ve got a special offer you can check out here. – Mark Ballard | 