(CNSNews.com) – At a Wednesday morning press conference, Senate Democrats almost – but not quite -- ended the embarrassing situation surrounding Roland Burris, the man chosen by Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich to fill Barack Obama’s Senate seat.
It looks like Burris will get the seat he came to Washington to claim, but it probably won’t happen on Wednesday.
Bottom line, Democrat leaders say the Illinois Supreme Court will have to act before the Senate does. Burris has asked the court to order the Illinois secretary of state to sign his certification for a Senate appointment.
At a late morning press conference, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois downplayed suggestions that race has anything to do with Burris’ failure to be seated.
The hold-up involves a technicality, they said: Senate rules require a certificate to be signed by the governor and co-signed by the secretary of state before a senator may be seated, and that rule has never been waived in over a hundred years, the two Democrats said.
“We believe that the certification by the [Illinois] secretary of state is vital,” Reid said, indicating that Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s (tainted) signature is irrelevant.
Reid also said the entire U.S. Senate will have to vote on Burris’ appointment, once the certification is complete – and once Burris has submitted an affidavit and thoroughly answered questions from Illinois lawmakers about how he came to be appointed to Obama’s seat. “That will take place tomorrow at 3 o’clock in Illinois,” Reid said, referring to Burris' meeting with the Illinois General Assembly.
Describing Burris as a “very engaging, extremely nice man,” Reid said Burris “understands above all else…the law,” which requires two signatures on his certification. “Now that matter is in the courts,” Reid said.
“Once that’s done, it will be one step out of the way,” Reid said, adding that Burris’s appointment also will go to the Senate Rules Committee – and “there’s going to come a time when the entire Senate is going to have to act on this, and I would hope that day would come sooner rather than later.”
Reid defended Democrats’ efforts to hold up the Burris appointment: “Well, it’s obvious – we have a man who’s arrested for trying to sell the office,” Reid said, referring to Gov. Blagojevich.
Clearly a lot is going on behind the scenes.
Reid and Durbin spoke – somewhat defensively -- shortly after the Associated Press reported that Burris would indeed be seated. According to some reports, Reid apparently is pressing Burris for assurances that he will not run for the Senate seat in 2010.
Sen. Durbin, noting that he’s always “respected” Burris, said concern over Gov. Blagojevich’s alleged improprieties have forced Democrats to carefully look at how Burris came to be appointed.
Durbin said Burris’ willingness to answer Illinois lawmakers’ questions on Thursday is “an important step in the process.”
“If that comes to a positive conclusion, as we believe it will, the next step is for the Rules Committee to review what has come together here, on a bipartisan basis, and recommend to the United States Senate…the next step.”
Burris did not appear with Reid and Durbin at the press conference but was expected to meet with reporters later in the day.