From The Wall Street Journal‘s Political Diary:
Senator Roland Burris cannily played the race card in bulldozing Democratic Senators into granting him the Senate seat he was appointed to by disgraced former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. But now that Mr. Burris misled all concerned about the range of his contacts with Blagojevich aides and fundraisers prior to his appointment, Democrats are quickly abandoning him.
His Senate colleague from Illinois, Majority Whip Dick Durbin, warns ominously: “The accuracy and completeness of his testimony and affidavits have been called into serious question. . . . His future in the Senate seat is in question.”
Even President Obama has weighed in, saying through spokesman Robert Gibbs that “the people of Illinois deserve to know the full extent of any involvement by Burris in raising money for Blagojevich.”
Mr. Burris is under relentless fire from the media too, with the Springfield Journal-Register reporting that he apparently did not disclose all of his lobbying work for horse racing interests to state lawmakers.
But the embattled Mr. Burris has two trump cards. Senators are notoriously reluctant to expel a member, especially the chamber’s only African-American. Such a move requires a two-thirds vote. In addition, Democrats need Mr. Burris’s vote, as demonstrated by their agonizing pursuit of the 60-vote filibuster-proof majority needed to pass last week’s stimulus bill.
Lastly, should Mr. Burris resign, there would be enormous pressure to hold a special election, which Democrats could well lose. Democratic Rep. Jan Schakowsky, a likely candidate for any vacancy, is calling on Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn to require a special election to fill the seat should it become vacant. Governor Quinn is on record as supporting such a move, and would be embarrassed if he reneged on that commitment.
So, as untenable as Mr. Burris’s situation looks, he may yet survive to complete the two-year term he was appointed to, if only because of the lack of any easy way to pry such a stubborn man from the seat he fought so hard to get.
– John Fund
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