“(T)his is not about Mr. Burris; it is about the integrity of a governor accused of attempting to sell this United States Senate seat. Anyone appointed by Gov. Blagojevich cannot be an effective representative of the people of Illinois and, as we have said, will not be seated by the Democratic Caucus.”
–U.S. Sens. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Dec. 30, 2008.
The illicit taking of a U.S. Senate seat that supposedly belongs to the people of Illinois is formally complete. On Friday the Senate Ethics Committee gave Roland Burris its mildest possible rebuke, a “Public Letter of Qualified Admonition.”
The letter’s essential meaning: Mr. Burris, you repeatedly lied to become one of us. Do this one more time and we’ll have to — gee, we don’t know — maybe issue a Public Letter of Unqualified Admonition. But you get to keep the seat, so sit down and enjoy.
The Ethics Committee didn’t use those words in gently patting Burris’ wrist, of course. It critiqued him “for actions and statements reflecting unfavorably upon the Senate” and scolded: “Your shifting explanations about your sworn statements appear less than candid.”
Appear less than candid? Burris has spouted five different versions — three of them sworn — about his lobbying of Team Blagojevich for the Senate seat. But if the other Democratic pols had kept their own word, Burris’ lies wouldn’t matter one whit.
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On the day FBI agents led Rod Blagojevich away in handcuffs, Dick Durbin called for a special election to replace Barack Obama in the Senate. Durbin grasped that under Illinois law, even a governor accused of criminally angling to sell a Senate seat still had the legal authority to fill it. “No appointment by this governor under these circumstances,” Durbin agonized in urging a special election, “could produce a credible replacement.”
Then-Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn also wanted a special election. House Speaker Michael Madigan said he was ready to schedule it.
Then came the maneuvering we’ve characterized in headlines as “Profiles in cowardice” and “The silence of the Dems.” Wow, if we schedule a special election, we could … lose it!
Illinois Dems didn’t try to strip Blagojevich of his power to replace Obama. And they didn’t try to slate a special election so the people of Illinois — rather than Blagojevich –could choose their own senator.
When Blagojevich picked Burris, Reid and Durbin leaped about like crazed tadpoles: They wouldn’t seat Burris or maybe they would but he really, really, really did have to tell the truth to an Illinois House impeachment committee. Then, after Burris flatly contradicted his Version 1 (I spoke with no Blagojevich cronies) by feeding the impeachment committee Version 2 (OK, I spoke with the guv’s close pal Lon Monk), Reid and Durbin seated Burris anyway.
But wait! Justice still could prevail. On Feb. 18, three days after Burris admitted in Version 4 that in fact he had spoken with six top Blagojevich associates about snagging the seat, Durbin warned: “At this point, his future in the Senate seat is in question.” Say, maybe the Senate Ethics Committee would take an interest in, um, Senate ethics.
Aw, not really, the Senate Ethics Committee confessed on Friday: Burris lied, sure, but Burris stays. But have you seen our Public Letter of Qualified Admonition?
* * *
Even that feckless gesture doesn’t end this tawdry episode in the Illinois culture of political sleaze.
Despite all that Blagojevich’s action and their own inaction have inflicted on this state, Illinois lawmakers haven’t provided for special elections to fill future Senate vacancies. U.S. House vacancies? Yes, that’s long been the law. But the next time a Senate post unexpectedly opens, citizens will realize they still don’t have the right to choose their own senator.
Why would Democratic pols want to change that? They’re betting that Illinois stays blue enough to give them a better-than-50-50 chance of holding the governorship if that vacancy ever arrives. Blagojevich may have embarrassed the Democrats, but letting him choose Obama’s successor at least kept the seat Democratic.
All of us will, though, have Burris as a constant reminder of this fiasco during the 2010 election cycle. The summertime trial of Blagojevich also will be a refresher.
The takeaway for Illinois voters:
Burris, Blago and the Dems. It’s not your Senate seat. It’s theirs.
