It's official:
Senate Democratic leaders today cleared the way for Roland W. Burris to be seated as a senator from Illinois, after more than a weeklong spectacle surrounding a corruption scandal in the state and the questioning of Mr. Burris’s credentials.
Burris is going to hold a press conference at 4:30 pm.
UPDATE (6:23 pm): You can watch Burris' full statement over at CBS2Chicago.com or read it on Lynn Sweet's blog. Meanwhile, here's a clip from the Q&A session that highlights a serious problem with the gubernatorial appointment process:
For those who can't watch, Burris is asked by a reporter what his high-priority issues will be as a U.S. Senator. Burris responds that he plans to "help pass the stimulus package" before adding, "I'll certainly have my pet issues I'll come up with."
Now usually you "come up with" your top policy priorities before entering Congress. In the best scenarios, it is a desire to address those very issues that leads you to seek office and over the course of the campaign you hone your arguments and grow your expertise. But here we have Burris saying that "learning the procedures of the Senate" is a higher priority than putting together an agenda.
Can you imagine someone running for office under a platform of "I'll figure it out once I get there"?
Matt Weidman (not verified) on Mon, 01/12/2009 - 18:54
He just wants the prestige of being a U.S. Senator. It's all about Roland Burris and what he thinks he deserves.
Feh!