Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) has erected a stonewall in his bid to
hold his seat after making several changes to his story of how he
was appointed by ousted Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. The
most recent — and most damning — change was his stunning
admission Monday night, that he in fact had made fundraising
phone calls for Blagojevich after all.
“With ongoing investigations under way,” Burris told a City Club
of Chicago luncheon crowd of 300 yesterday, and perhaps 50
assembled reporters, “I will no longer engage the media and have
facts drip out in selective soundbites.” He was referring to the
announced probes by both the Sangamon County State’s Attorney and
the Senate Ethics Committee.
Burris denied the assembled journalists their customary
post-luncheon press conference by briskly departing the venue
after his remarks. Burris’s new tack comes after several days of
ongoing press contact and deepening confusion about what,
exactly, is the real story of his appointment.
The Chicago Tribune Tuesday called on Burris to step
down. Growing numbers of Illinois Republicans are demanding a
special election to select his replacement, while several leading
Illinois Democrats are unusually supportive of investigating one
of their own.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) applauded Burris’s
“decision to cooperate” with investigators, while ethics
committee chair Barbara Boxer’s (D-Calif.) spokesman said “a
preliminary inquiry” always results when allegations of
impropriety reach the committee.
Illinois’ senior senator, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, told
Chicago Tribune political writer Rick Pearson after
Burris’s lunch address, “At this point, his future in the Senate
seat is in question.”
“I’m troubled by the fact that his testimony was not complete and
it was unsatisfactory. It wasn’t the full disclosure under oath
that we were asking for,” Durbin said from Turkey, where he is on
Senate business. Accompanying Durbin is Democratic state
Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, who makes no secret of his interest
in challenging Burris, should he survive until 2010.
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, also a Democrat Democrat,
has urged the Republican prosecutor of Sangamon County, home of
state capital Springfield, to investigate Burris for statements
made under oath to the state house impeachment committee on
January 8.
Madigan, whose father is the Speaker of the Illinois House, is
seen as a possible Burris successor should Pat Quinn, the new
governor, be allowed to appoint. In this line, Quinn sending the
attorney general to the Senate would buy peace with Madigan’s
father and remove her from gubernatorial politicking. For his
part, Speaker Madigan on Tuesday forwarded to Sangamon County
State’s Attorney John Schmidt a dossier on Burris’s January
Illinois House testimony and his subsequent additional affidavit.
Impeachment panel ranking Republican Jim Durkin has demanded
Burris’s resignation and a special election.
Burris said repeatedly yesterday that he is open to the official
probes, which now provide him a basis on which to quit contact
with reporters. “I will cooperate in any way I can,” he said. “I
have nothing to hide.”
Calling his incipient Senate career “the honor of my lifetime,”
Burris cited his 30 years of public service with no link to
scandal. “I am new in D.C.,” Burris said. Citing “misinformation
in the media,” he continued, “I am not known there. But you know
Roland Burris. I have a record in Illinois. I am the real
Roland.”
Burris presented his latest formulation about the underlying
facts crisply. “One, yes: I told people I wanted to serve.
Friends and media and anyone who would listen. Two, no: I did not
have conversations about my appointment with anyone but the
governor’s attorney. Three, yes: The governor’s brother reached
out to me. I did not give a single dollar to the Governor.”
Burris said he has never asked for anything in return for his
public service — until now: “Stop the rush to judgment.”
Official Democratic displeasure with Burris has been evident
since the ill-fated Governor surprised the state and the nation
with his appointment of Illinois’ first African-American
statewide officeholder. Burris, out of office since January 1995,
had settled into a quiet obscurity punctuated by some lobbying
work and occasional testimonials for his barrier-breaking career.
Burris’s political challenges were illustrated by an e-column
released during his talk revealing that Chicago Urban League
CEO Cheryle Jackson is considering a primary run against him.
Jackson, 44, is an attractive and articulate force in Chicago’s
civil rights and business communities, who is credited with
bringing new life to her organization.
With contenders such as Jackson, Giannoulias, and even perhaps
Attorney General Madigan orbiting his Senate seat, Burris may
wonder how an improbable appointment to one of his dream
positions had gone so far wrong so quickly.
