Collins blocks budget vote; Commissioner says budget will not pass unless she's part of the compromise

Saying she is "pressure-proof," Cook County Board Commissioner Earlean Collins Tuesday successfully blocked a vote on President John H. Stroger Sr.'s $3 billion budget, and said she'll do it again if he doesn't reform and strike a viable compromise.

Because he didn't have the necessary nine votes to pass his budget, Stroger and Finance Chairman John Daley adjourned the board meeting until around Dec. 18. It was a victory to Collins and her supporters.

"There are two factions on the county board," Collins told reporters. "One is the old guard, the other, the reformers." Collins said she is about reform and that no longer can Stroger "be a dictator" to the 17-member county …