The End Of The Roland Burris Era

Roland Burris has decided not to run for election to the US Senate from Illinois. Also, from his jail cell, Charles Manson has passed on a Congressional run. And that guy who accidentally caught the ball to ruin the Cubs' World Series chances is begging off a run for Alderman of Wrigleyville.

All of these announcements have about the same element of surprise. Burris raised $845 in the first quarter of the year, and the rumor was that the second quarter wouldn't be much better. He'll go down in history as one of the oddest characters to wind up in the world's most deliberative body (by the way, they can be less deliberative, we won't mind).

So who will take his place in the Obama seat in the Senate? Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who would have been a lock, passed on the race, and moments later, Republican Congressman Mark Kirk jumped in. Kirk represents a moderate district and some in Illinois think he would be formidable for either State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias or Kennedy spawn Chris Kennedy. This could be a tough race for the Democrats, but Giannoulias' ties to the Obama Administration can hopefully help get him across the line.

I'll tell you, the news has not been hopeful for Democratic Senate races lately. Obviously there's lots of time and it'll all depend on the economy, but considering the state of the Republican Party and the number of seats the GOP has to defend, this cycle is starting to look like an opportunity lost.

The Burris Clown Show Returns

I prefer to ignore the sad spectacle of Roland Burris, but this pathetic tape recording of the Illinois Senator pleading with Rod Blagojevich's brother to have the Governor seat him, and offering to "personally do something" for Blagojevich cannot really be ignored any further. He not only offered to raise money in exchange for the Senate seat, but he intimated that he would use his lawyer's name on some of the checks, which is a total violation of law. And while Burris never followed through and actually offered anything of value, he has had several months to disclose this new information, where he appears to be wrestling with getting around those restrictions.

This tape will actually get released, apparently, and MSNBC reported that Dick Durbin won't support Burris for re-election after this revelation. Big surprise, he's polling around 8%. But this does vindicate Durbin and Reid to an extent for wanting to block Burris in the first place. Clearly there was a taint to his appointment, as there are to all Senate appointments, in my view.

$845

I've decided, in the interest of doing less better, to stay mostly out of the nitty-gritty electoral politics arena, mainly because there are others doing that better than I ever could. But this is worth mentioning.

U.S. Senator Roland Burris, the controversial appointee to the seat once held by President Barack Obama, is holding his first campaign fundraiser since he took office this weekend—and the financial report he filed this week shows he could use some political donations.

Burris campaign officials on Thursday released a report showing the new senator raised only $845 from January through March and had $111,032 in debts from defending himself in ongoing ethics and perjury probes and travel.

I think I have inadvertently raised $845 for my future elections, and I'm not running for anything.

By contrast, Alexi Giannoulias, who is going to beat Burris' tail in the primary, raised $1.1 million in the same quarter.

$845.

C'mon Roland, TRY.

In other fun Illinois news, Mark Kirk, who could be the "moderate" counterpart on the Republican side in this Senate race, just called for the shooting of the Illinois Governor. And I actually do believe this qualifies as a moderate in the modern Republican Party. At least he didn't call for shooting Obama!

Showdown At The IL Corral

The early report was that Roland Burris wouldn't resign but would agree not to run in 2010, but apparently that's not what he told Dick Durbin:

Sen. Dick Durbin said today that he told Sen. Roland Burris that he should resign.

But Burris, the junior and appointed senator from Illinois, told the senior senator from Illinois and No. 2 Democratic leader in the Senate that he would not resign, Durbin said.

Durbin said Burris refused to tell him whether or not he would run for election in 2010 Durbin said was "disappointed" in both responses, and said would not support Burris in any election bid. He said he would work with Burris as long as he remains in the Senate.

Durbin joins Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn and others in seeking the resignation of the senator appointed by the former and impeached Gov. Rod Blagojevich after Burris acknowledged that he had tried to raise campaign money for the governor.

No surprise that Burris is living in denial about it. He'll have to be pried out of that Senate chamber with a crowbar. And in 2010, he will get approximately less support than any incumbent politician ever.

And while I agree he should resign, I'm thinking David Vitter is REALLY not a good messenger to tell anyone they should resign for their "ethical shortcomings."

The Staff-less Senator

Yesterday the press secretary resigned. Today the acting Chief of Staff to Roland Burris resigned. And Robert Gibbs today nudged him a bit further off the ledge.



If Burris recognizes that he's been a Senator for a month and can still chisel it into his mausoleum, I think he'll go quietly.

...by the way, Gibbs' comment, which really stuck the knife in, should put to rest this ridiculous meme that Obama pushed for Burris to be seated because he needed his vote on the stimulus. As Kagro X points out, if Burris wasn't seated there would only be 98 Senators requiring 59 votes to overcome a filibuster, so the number of Republicans needed for passage would be, uh, exactly the same. John Kass is our Pert Plus Ignornant Pundit Of The Week!

The Last Days Of Burris' Bunker

The pressure is really hitting Roland Burris now. Gov. Pat Quinn speaks:

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn (D) on Friday called on his “good friend” Roland Burris (D-Ill.) to step down from the Senate and said the Illinois legislature should immediately take up a bill to require special elections to fill Senate vacancies.

Quinn declined to criticize the appointed senator, saying he would go down as a “great Illinois citizen,” but he said Burris has a “cloud over his head.”

He said Burris, whom he has known for 37 years, never should have accepted the appointment from embattled former Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) and that Senate business is too important right now to have a senator with so many questions to answer. He said Burris would be doing the state a service by stepping down.

Good for Quinn for calling on the legislature for a special election. Some would say that the Democrats would be unnecessarily threatening a blue seat, but I see no evidence of that with a not-Roland-Burris candidate. Burris was even leading in polls before this latest stuff broke, which means that generic Dem is favored over the leading Republican candidates, even with the ethical fallout from the Blagojevich situation.

Quinn is doing the right thing here. It's very hard for an executive to willingly give up their own power. Kudos. Now the Congress should finish the job by passing Russ Feingold's Constitutional amendment making this the law of the land.

I'm Smart! Not Like Everybody Says! Like Dumb, I'm Smart!

I am sad I missed Roland Burris' press conference:

Roland Burris is on TV giving a speech defending himself against allegations he lied about his role in being solicited and then trying to help raise money for Rod Blagojevich to help get the senate seat. And it's basically identical to a series of speeches Blago himself gave when he was swirling around the bowl: How dare you give me any crap for lying about that fundraising stuff when, my god, I just helped pass the Stimulus Bill, SCHIP and the Lily Ledbetter bill.

A-Rod's presser was less excruciating. Where do they get these guys in Illinois?

It was obvious from the moment anyone accepted an offer from Rod Blagojevich to be appointed that they had only a passing familiarity with ethics and standards. And now it looks like the dam is going to burst. The Senate Ethics Committee is opening a probe into Burris' possible perjury, and Illinois Rep. Phil Hare is calling for resignation:

“Senator Burris’ story has now evolved several times since he testified before the Illinois House Impeachment Committee in December. The only logical conclusion is that he is not being entirely straight with the people of Illinois.

“A cloud of corruption has hung over our state and its leaders for too long. The impeachment and removal of former Governor Blagojevich was a step in the right direction. But just as it looked like a new era in Illinois politics was possible, we suffer yet another setback. It is like a recurring nightmare.

“Given this latest revelation, I believe it is in the best interest of all Illinoisans that Senator Burris resigns. Our state and its citizens deserve the whole truth, not bits and pieces only when it is convenient.”

Citizens also deserve to have a full say in who is their representative in Washington. If Burris doesn't survive and removes himself from the Senate, there ought to be a special election. The new Governor can ask the legislature to approve one. This only highlights how broken the appointment process is for vacancies. It's not the exception, it's the rule.

Please Resign, Roland

This gets more pathetic every day.

U.S. Sen. Roland Burris has acknowledged he sought to raise campaign funds for then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich at the request of the governor’s brother at the same time he was making a pitch to be appointed to the Senate seat previously held by President Barack Obama.

Burris' latest comments in Peoria Monday night were the first time he has publicly said he was actively trying to raise money for Blagojevich. Previously Burris has left the impression that he always balked at the issue of raising money for the governor because of his interest in the Senate appointment.

In comments to reporters after appearing at a Democratic dinner, the senator several times contradicted his latest under-oath affidavit that he quietly filed with the Illinois House impeachment panel earlier this month. That affidavit was itself an attempt to clean up his live, sworn testimony to the panel Jan. 8, when he omitted his contacts with several Blagojevich insiders.

You can read Burris' give-and-take with reporters here.

I was willing to let Burris be a lame duck who would clearly lose a primary challenge in 2010, but I don't think you can have a guy who is essentially admitting to the very quid pro quo deal that got Rod Blagojevich impeached sitting around the US Senate. This could be grounds for his removal inside the Senate, but Burris should do the right thing and spare us the agony. There's no reason for him to continue being a United States Senator.

More at MyDD.

Dance, Roland, Dance

This is the portrait of a politician whose days are numbered.

Senator Roland W. Burris of Illinois on Sunday defended his evolving descriptions of conversations he had with allies of former Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich in the months before Mr. Blagojevich appointed him to fill the Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama.

“I did not donate one single dollar, nor did I raise any money or promise any favors of any kind for the governor,” Mr. Burris, a Democrat who was sworn in as a senator a month ago, said at a contentious news conference.

Mr. Burris tried to explain why he did not mention three phone conversations with Mr. Blagojevich’s brother — in which he now says he was asked for fund-raising help — during testimony last month before a committee of state lawmakers weighing whether to impeach Mr. Blagojevich.

“Anyone who suggests otherwise,” Mr. Burris added, “or would insinuate that my testimony in person or in writing is anything other than fully compliant with the committee and consistent with the truth is simply playing at partisan politics.”

This is pretty simple. Burris failed to disclose contacts with Blago's brother and some other allies, and did so under oath. You can call it perjury or not, but there was a failure to tell the whole truth. And just by virtue of accepting the appointment, Burris was willing to sully himself in order to get the job.

It's going to be short-lived. He'll get no support from the party establishment, who will coalesce around a primary challenger for expediency's sake. Nobody wants to defend a proxy for Blagojevich in 2010. He'll be a lame duck in a matter of months.

Senate Campaign News!

Yes, with around 650 days until the next election, there's no reason not to do a roundup of Senate campaign news!!!

• KY-Sen: Dan Mongiardo, the Lieutenant Governor who nearly knocked off Jim Bunning in 2004, will seek the seat again in 2010. Bunning, who compared Mongiardo to Saddam Hussein in 2004 because he has olive skin, is being begged to retire by the GOP leadership and can't raise any money. I think Mongiardo would beat him pretty badly, but we'll see if Bunning takes the hint.

• IL-Sen: Roland Burris, who by the way is responsible for Barack Obama's Presidency, should draw a primary challenge in 2010, and the opponent could be an Obama ally:

One of President Obama’s close friends and basketball buddies is considering a campaign against Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) in the Democratic primary.

Illinois State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias is holding conversations with leading Illinois Democrats in preparation for a possible candidacy, according to a Democratic operative familiar with his decision-making process.

“He’s been talking to a lot of Democrats in Illinois who believe that this seat is gone is if Burris is the nominee. If it’s Mark Kirk or a rich Republican, we’ve got to hold this seat. That’s enough to encourage him to take a very serious look,” said the operative.

At 32, Giannoulias has been on the fast track in Illinois politics since leaving his job as a bank vice president to run for state treasurer in 2006. Inspired by Obama’s Senate campaign, he ran against the Democratic candidate backed by the party establishment and, aided by Obama’s endorsement, prevailed.

Burris and really all of these Senate appointees should get a primary challenge. If they're worthy of representing the people of their state they ought to earn it.

• CO-Sen: Interesting profile on Michael Bennet, the youngest member of the Senate who's been sleeping at his mom's house while setting up shop in Washington. He's kind of a blank slate, and I hope he gets a primary challenge as well, but something tells me that this guy can weather the uncertainty. Universally the reaction to him is that he's smart, which is something you don't hear about many Senators and which may just be enough.

...Colorado's Attorney General John Suthers, the only statewide office holder in the Rocky Mountain State, just declined the option of running against Bennet in 2010. That'll make it easier both for Bennet to win or for a Democratic challenger to primary him.

Sen. Burris (D-IL)

Roland Burris was sworn in today. The Cook Political Report immediately moved this race to a toss-up for 2010, but I don't think that's fair. It assumes Burris will be the nominee of the Democratic Party, which is far less than a 50-50 proposition IMO. More likely is that a big name with no ties to Blagojevich will come in and take the nomination, and blow away the meager Republican competition. And Roland Burris will be something of a footnote.

I could be wrong, but that seems likely.

Also I predict that approximately nothing will be done about the Senate appointment process even though this episode has shown it to be a farce.

Crackerjack Strategy

I hope they manage to do better with Republicans than they did with Sen. Roland Burris, but I'm not too hopeful.

Eager to put the scandal-tainted standoff behind them, Senate Democrats accepted Roland Burris as President-elect Barack Obama's Senate successor on Monday and said they expect to swear in the new Illinois senator this week.

"He is now the senator-designate from Illinois and, as such, will be accorded all the rights and privileges of a senator-elect," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois said in a joint statement after Senate lawyers determined that Burris' paperwork met Senate requirements to be seated.

The two senators said they expect Burris, a former Illinois attorney general, to be sworn in and seated this week, barring objections from Republicans.

I really don't know what they were trying to accomplish.

He's Baaack

If I were Roland Burris and I wanted to become a Senator this way, I would pitch a tent outside the Senate floor and hold vigil until the Dem leaders inside wearily decide that it's too embarrassing to hold him back any longer. Especially because their legal argument has been revealed to be pretty silly.

Roland Burris may return to Washington next week to demand that he be accepted as the legitimate Senate appointee to replace President-elect Barack Obama and be sworn into office, according to a Burris adviser.

If Burris' appointment is not accepted, he will file a lawsuit challenging Majority Leader Harry Reid and the Democratic leadership's refusal to seat him, the adviser said [...]

Reid and Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) have refused to seat Burris, arguing that his appointment by Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was not certified by Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White.

But on Friday night, White submitted a document to the Senate certifying Burris' appointment. White's action followed an earlier decision by the Illinois Supreme Court, which ruled that Blagojevich's approval alone was all that was needed for Burris to take the seat.

This is going to end really ugly, and Blagojevich can't be removed from office fast enough to stop it. Burris has a legal claim to the seat, no matter how tainted the process is. Tying him up in court while seating a designate from Blago's post-impeachment successor Pat Quinn will probably make this situation WORSE. Just a disaster on all levels.

Out Of His Mind

Earlier today I speculated that the Senate might use the incidence of Rod Blagojevich's impeachment to stiffen their spines on the seating of Roland Burris. That's sure what it looks like:

No one can occupy the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama until the governor of Illinois is removed and a new appointment can be certified, Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois said Friday.

Durbin, the second-ranking Democrat in the Senate, was reacting to the Illinois Supreme Court's ruling denying a motion by Roland Burris that the state's secretary of state certify his appointment to the seat.

They're really sticking to the whole "the Secretary of State didn't sign the piece of paper and we can't go against tradition argument, even though the IL Supreme Court basically called it ridiculous today. But what's unsaid here is that Blago was impeached, and the Senate trial will probably be expedited, and I wouldn't be surprised if he was out on his ass in a couple of weeks. Not to mention the fact that he's being publicly insane and further tainting the appointment by making everyone aware of it.

Okay, fine, Blagojevich is clearly insane. I'm sitting here at my desk, listening to him chatter on in the background about the impeachment vote. And he's going on about how his policies let someone get a liver transplant, and should he really be impeached for that? It's like some bizarre performance art. Now he's quoting Tennyson.

No, really.



As Blagojevich swirls the bowl, Burris' hopes of getting seated do as well. Somehow, I have a sneaking suspicion that Lt. Gov. Quinn will appoint Burris, the Secretary of State will sign the order and everything will be fine.

Annals of Bad Headlines

The AP sez Burris Denied by Illinois Supreme Court. What actually happened is that the court ruled that Jesse White, the Secretary of State of Illinois, doesn't have to sign Roland Burris' appointment papers for the US Senate to seat him, under Illinois law. The heart of the ruling does nothing to Burris except make his seating more likely, because it essentially tells the Senate to "stop playing dumb."

This, then, represents the IL Supremes "denying" Burris.

Ah, media.

There's A Guy Who's DISLIKED

Rod Blagojevich was impeached by the Illinois House today on a vote of 114-1. The case now moves to the State Senate for a trial, where conviction, given the House vote, is probably a certainty.

Everyone who thinks that Blagojevich is some kind of evil genius for getting the Senate to back down and seat Roland Burris needs to explain to me how that helped Blagojevich in any way. As I see it, Burris, even if he gets seated, isn't surviving a Democratic primary, now that he's become something of a laughingstock. And even if he did, the act of appointing certainly didn't endear Blago to Illinois lawmakers, in whose fate he now rests. It didn't save him from impeachment and it won't save him from indictment. There's the theory that this helped him with African-American potential jurors in an upcoming trial, but that's speculative at best. Also, the whole trial could take place in Springfield and not Chicago, which would change that calculus quite a bit.

Blagojevich is delusional and just decided to stick his fellow politicians in the eye one last time. He's no great tactician.

Meanwhile, Burris might have his own issues to deal with, after admitting he talked with the guy known as "Lobbyist #1" in the criminal complaint about a Senate appointment. I would caution those who think his seating is all but done.

She Happens To Be Right On This One

Dianne Feinstein says that Roland Burris ought to be seated. She was one of the 50 Senators who signed that letter urging Rod Blagojevich to resign and imploring him not to make an appointment. And Burris should have not turned himself into a national joke by accepting it. But once all that was done, legally there is no reason not to seat a legitimate appointment by a governor who hasn't even been indicted, let alone impeached. Politically there may be a problem, but there's a problem on both sides - obviously seating Burris would create a "culture of corruption" problem in the Democratic caucus, but what's happening right now looks TERRIBLE politically, like blocking the schoolhouse door. Feinstein's stepping out, but she's on pretty firm legal ground.

Meanwhile, Burris is meeting with Democratic leaders today, and hopefully the three of them can come up with a strategy that defuses the politics of this, whether that means seating him or not. Burris' lawsuits will probably be wrapped up, in his favor, before Blagojevich is impeached and convicted and a new Illinois governor can make an appointment. So they'd better find a way out of this. The Quinn option may be a good one.

The key question now for Reid and Durbin: How do they find cover in a political story that has run amok? One idea being considered is to have Burris win an endorsement from the sitting lieutenant governor, Pat Quinn, one Democratic insider said.

A Democratic aide familiar with the process said that the idea of urging Quinn to endorse Burris is being seriously considered, and that strategy may emerge depending on the outcome of the meeting. Democrats are also considering urging Burris to not run in 2010 as one condition for their support, aides said.

In an interview with Politico on Tuesday, Reid said he would support a Quinn appointment, even if it was Burris.

Of course, I will once again say that the root problem here is the APPOINTMENT PROCESS itself.

Nate Silver has a bit more. Apparently a Gallup poll came out showing a narrow majority opposes Burris' seating; however, that same poll shows that people LOVE the idea of a special election.

UPDATE: The AP is reporting that the Senate will seat Burris, though Reid's office is denying it. I really have no sympathy for the Senate Dems on this one - they totally brought it on themselves.

Blocking The Schoolhouse Door

The picture at the top of this story is even worse than the outcome. Roland Burris looks like one of the Little Rock Nine trying to get into the schoolhouse.

Roland W. Burris, the would-be junior senator from Illinois, arrived at the Capitol on Tuesday morning for the start of the 111th Congress and was greeted like a celebrity, even though he remains a private citizen, at least for the moment.

Mr. Burris, who shortly before his arrival had insisted he was “certainly not looking for drama,” found himself caught up in a comedy of sorts. Looking unsettled and with rain glistening on his topcoat, he entered the building to encounter a mob of reporters and photographers.

Capitol police officers tried to clear a path for Mr. Burris. “You can’t keep a regular citizen from walking into the Capitol,” one officer shouted.

Somehow, Citizen Burris made his way to the office of Nancy Erickson, the secretary of the Senate, to whom he presented his credentials, only to have her reject them. Afterward, the aspiring legislator stood in the rain outside and declared, “Members of the media, my name is Roland Burris, the junior senator from the State of Illinois.”

It didn't matter that Burris wasn't looking for drama, because the press was, and they found it. I am gleeful to be away from a TV set today, because I can imagine the cable news yakkers are being brutal. The racial component to this, from the standpoint of optics, is undeniable and not worth fighting. It looks really bad.

Thank you, Senate vacancy process of gubernatorial appointments!

Stuart Smalley Saves The Senate?

So Al Franken is going to be certified the winner of the Minnesota Senate election as early as today, but Minnesota state law asserts that the parties must wait for an election certificate for seven days, at which time either side can pursue a legal challenge. Norm Coleman is expected to do so, and the certification won't be official until those challenges are exhausted.

Fortunately, top Democrats, having waited to speak on the matter until the end of the recount, are finally pushing back in the PR war, asserting that Franken has won and calling on Coleman to step aside. Here's Chuck Schumer, outgoing head of the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee:

"With the Minnesota recount complete, it is now clear that Al Franken won the election. The Canvassing Board will meet tomorrow to wrap up its work and certify him the winner, and while there are still possible legal issues that will run their course, there is no longer any doubt who will be the next Senator from Minnesota. Even if all the ballots Coleman claims were double counted or erroneously added were resolved in his favor, he still wouldn't have enough votes to win. With the Senate set to begin meeting on Tuesday to address the important issues facing the nation, it is crucial that Minnesota's seat not remain empty, and I hope this process will resolve itself as soon as possible."

And Harry Reid:

I believe that tomorrow the bipartisan state canvassing board will certify Al Franken the winner. After all, early on Senator Coleman criticized Al Franken for wanting a recount and wasting taxpayer money. I would hope now that it is clear he lost, that Senator Coleman follow his own advice and not subject the people of Minnesota to a costly legal battle.

I hope to see that pressure ratcheted up in the coming days. Coleman can't win, he can only delay the matter.

It is important to note that, from a mathematical standpoint, only seating Al Franken will not affect the balance of power in the Senate, given the Roland Burris fiasco. With only 98 Senators at the moment, Democrats would need 59 to end a filibuster (they would have 57, including Lieberman and Sanders, in their caucus). If Franken is installed as Senator #99, that threshold would rise to 60, leaving Democrats still two votes shy. Only by seating Democratic Senators from Minnesota and Illinois would Democrats move within one vote of a filibuster-proof majority. Nate Silver explains further. The importance of this depends on whether you think 60 Democrats or 60 votes is the most crucial bar to clear, whether you think the party will be unified, etc.

As for Burris, he'll be showing up in Washington tomorrow for his swearing-in ceremony, which will be a fiasco. Expect lots and lots of racial politics:

At the Chicago church, residents said they had formed a group in the past week in support of Mr. Burris’s appointment, a group that seemed far less focused on Mr. Blagojevich than on the need for a black leader in the Senate.

“The U.S. Senate must reflect all of America,” said Bishop Simon Gordon, one of several pastors at the sendoff.

Representative Bobby L. Rush, an Illinois Democrat who attended the event, described the standoff over Mr. Burris in racial terms, portraying the Senate as “the last bastion of racial plantation politics in America.”

Ugly. For his part, Reid did not close the door to Burris being seated on Meet the Press yesterday. Maybe he's done the math, too.

Impeachment Fast Track As Harry Reid Hopes For A Bailout

Looks like Michael Madigan got a breathless phone call from Harry Reid.

The Illinois House could vote as early as next week on whether to impeach Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

The Illinois House has bumped up its schedule and will meet several days next week. They had been set to reconvene on Jan. 12.

A spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan says the chamber may vote on a recommendation from the special committee studying whether Blagojevich should be impeached.

Much like in the US Congress, an impeachment vote in the Illinois House would need only a majority vote. Then there would be a trial in the Senate, with 2/3 needed for conviction.

Reid is desperate for the Illinois House to get Blagojevich impeached already so the Lt. Governor can make an appointment to the seat and the Senate can choose him over Roland Burris. This still seems like an extremely dubious out for Reid and co., as Burris has already been appointed under a legal process, but somehow everyone believes they can just get a do-over.

I don't really understand what the hell the Senate leadership is doing. Granted, they don't want Republicans to use Burris as an example of the Democrats' "culture of corruption" for the next two years, but the "running around like a chicken with their head cut off" strategy seems like a poor counter-maneuver.

I assume the Senate Dems feel that they have to assert themselves or risk being seen as weak. They are, as Jane points out, afraid that John Cornyn will hang Burris around their necks. But unfortunately, they are asserting themselves in a way that simultaneously appears to be petty, unlawful, panicked and potentially even racist. At the very least they are escalating a distracting political circus at a time of great national crisis, which hardly seems like a smart way to start the new Democratic era. I'm all for fighting the good fight, but it would probably be more useful to do it over something that actually matters.

But hey, maybe it's actually good for them to have a big public, interparty hissy fit right now. With enough practice on each other, they might develop enough courage and skill to outmaneuver the Republicans someday.

They could start by seating Al Franken once the Minnesota Canvassing Board declares him the victor, or at least forcing the 41 members of the Republican caucus to filibuster. That would be a fight with a tangible end goal instead of "avoiding a political embarrassment," a cause which is ill-served by CREATING a political embarrassment at the same time. Besides, Burris is hardly the first or the last man put into the Senate by a process perceived to be crooked. Look at this guy:

(William "Wild Bill" Langer) was removed from office by the North Dakota Supreme Court for allegedly pressuring recipients of governmental aid to donate money to his private newspaper and for allegedly forcing state employees to give funds to the state Republican party. [1]. He was found guilty of fraud in 1934. The North Dakota Supreme Court ordered him removed from office due to his conviction on a felony charge, and on July 17, 1934, the Court declared Lieutenant Governor Ole H. Olson the legitimate governor. Langer gathered with about ten friends, declared North Dakota independent, declared martial law, and barricaded himself in the governor's mansion until the Supreme Court would meet with him. [2] Langer eventually relented, and Olson served the remainder of Langer's term as Governor [...]

Can you believe this story?

He's governor, he's accused of corruption. He's convicted, and removed from office, but he refuses to leave, barricades himself in, declares martial law and independence from the United States! Then he comes out, goes to jail, gets acquitted in a second trial during which he later admitted to bribing the judge!

And then he runs for governor again and wins, and then later for Senate and wins! And when he gets to the Senate, they investigate and he admits the bribery!

And there are still three votes to seat him on the committee! And 52 to seat him on the Senate floor!

Predictably, Langer went on to become Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Senate Democrats standing up and fighting for the Constitution is a nice sign. When it only comes at the expense of other Democrats, it's more troubling than comforting.