Roland Burris (Obama's successor)

[Ironduke]

I don't see how the Senate Democrats can reject him -- here's the portion of the constitutional that deals with the issue of appointments:

When vacancies happen in the representation of any state in the Senate, the executive authority of such state shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, that the legislature of any state may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.

I think Burris is going to sue, and his appointment will be upheld. Do you think Burris has been unconstitutionally rejected by the Senate?

Senate Rejects Burris in Spectacle at Capitol
By Paul Kane
Senate officials this morning rejected Roland Burris's effort to be seated as the successor to President-elect Barack Obama, telling the former Illinois attorney general that he lacked the requisite approval of state officials to be sworn in with the rest of the class of 2008 in today's launch of the 111th Congress.

With a stand-off remaining among Illinois officials over Gov. Rod Blagojevich's effort to appoint Burris to Obama's seat, Secretary of the Senate Nancy Erickson instructed Burris in a closed-door meeting that he would not be seated.

Placing himself at the center of a nationally televised spectacle, Burris arrived at the Capitol in a steady rain with an entourage of aides and lawyers, followed by dozens of journalists, including some broadcasting the procession into the Capitol and up to the third floor on hand-held digital cameras and cell phones.

Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) and a bipartisan group of leaders have rejected Burris's appointment on the grounds that the criminal charges against Blagojevich, including one that he tried to sell the appointment in exchange for financial gain, make it impossible for him to pick a successor to Obama without tarnishing the decision.

Obama supports Reid's decision, and in Illinois the secretary of state, Jesse White, has refused to sign the appointment papers from Blagojevich, which has sparked a legal battle there over his inaction. Without that signature, Burris's appointment is not considered official, according to Senate officials.

Burris was met at the Capitol entrance by Terry Gainer, the Senate sergeant at arms, who escorted him through the regular visitors' entrance and up to the third floor of the Capitol to Erickson's office -- in a regular elevator bank, not the one reserved for senators only.

When Burris was rejected, he marched out of the Capitol and across the street, with a media army in tow, where he held a press conference next to the Russell Senate Office Building.

"I am not seeking to have any type of confrontation," said Burris, shielded from the rain by an umbrella and surrounded by three attorneys and what seemed liked dozens of reporters and camera crews. "I will now consult with my attorneys, and we will determine what our next step will be."

Burris and his lawyers vowed to take his appointment into the federal courts. But his lawyers said it was unlikely that any court challenge would be filed today.

Source: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the..._in_spect.html

[Johnny W]

IMO, its up to the Illinois supreme court as to whether or not he should be seated. The State legislature granted the governor the authority to do it, and it all depends on what the conditions of that authority are. If the Illinois supreme court says the Sec of State's signature isn't necessary then he should be seated.

[highsea]

So if he doesn't get the seat, will he have to give the money back? :P

[Shamus]

So if he doesn't get the seat, will he have to give the money back? :P

[Ironduke]

Just as I thought, no basis whatsoever for his rejection. I think the Dems are doing whatever they can to save face.

Dems accept Burris into the Senate

The Roland Burris saga is over, as Democratic Senate leaders have accepted his credentials, clearing the way for him to be sworn in as the junior senator from Illinois by the end of this week.

The decision ends an embarrassing chapter in Democratic politics and allows the Senate to move on after the Burris spectacle dominated the opening week of the 111th Congress

In a statement issued after a 45-minute meeting between Senate officials and Burris’ lawyers, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Senate Majority Whip Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) said Burris is the senator-designate from Illinois now that the secretary of the Senate has approved his latest credentials.

“Accordingly, barring objections from Senate Republicans, we expect Senator-designee Burris to be sworn in and formally seated later this week,” the statement said. “We are working with him and the office of the vice president to determine the date and time of the swearing-in.”

The statement marks a major departure for Democratic leaders, who reversed themselves and decided to take their lumps in the media for a short period of time, rather than allowing the issue to drag on indefinitely. After first saying they would never seat an appointee from the scandal-tarred Gov. Rod Blagojevich, Democrats relented and decided to lay out a three-step process to seat Burris.

On Monday, Democrats dropped one of the steps — forcing the Senate Rules and Administration Committee and the full Senate to review the legality of the appointment.

“As we had outlined to Mr. Burris, a path needed to be followed that respects the rules of the Senate,” the Reid-Durbin statement said. “We committed to Mr. Burris that once those requirements were satisfied, we would be able to proceed. We are pleased that everything is now in order, we congratulate Senator-designee Burris on his appointment and we look forward to working with him in the 111th Congress.”

Republicans are not expected to object to Burris’ seating.

Burris, appearing at an afternoon news conference in Chicago, said he was "humbled" by the decision of Senate leaders to accept his appointment and said he recognized that the issue had caused a rift among his party.

But he said demands of his state were too great to leave the state without a second senator.

"Our state finds itself in the midst of an unfortunate time," he said, later adding: "It's always darkest before dawn."

The handling of the matter also infuriated several Democratic senators and led to a heated 30-minute debate Sunday evening, further evidence that the issue was proving to be an unwelcome distraction.

Burris dispatched his attorneys Monday afternoon to make the case that his paperwork complies with an obscure rule that Democrats initially used to block his appointment to Barack Obama’s Senate seat.

Burris' attorneys walked into the office of the secretary of the Senate at 2:50 p.m. for a meeting that last approximately 45 minutes, and refused to answer questions from the press.

The decision of Senate lawyers and Nancy Erickson, the secretary of the Senate, to deem Burris' credentials as valid was crucial. If they had rejected Burris again, the distraction would have lingered for weeks.

Durbin was clearly relieved that the debate over Burris' legitimacy as a Senate appointee was over. Durbin had been criticized, both publicly and privately by Senate Democrats, for his role in the Burris affair.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0109/17366.html