Did you just link a blog? :lolabove:
Yep, an ice blog, watch the Titanic go down in slow mo.
Demoncrats will NOT seat Burris.
The Senate Democratic Leadership issued this statement this afternoon, in advance of the Blagojevich press conference, which is set to begin in a half-hour:
"It is truly regrettable that despite requests from all 50 Democratic Senators and public officials throughout Illinois, Gov. Blagojevich would take the imprudent step of appointing someone to the United States Senate who would serve under a shadow and be plagued by questions of impropriety. We say this without prejudice toward Roland Burris's ability, and we respect his years of public service. But this is not about Mr. Burris; it is about the integrity of a governor accused of attempting to sell this United States Senate seat. Under these circumstances, 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.
"Next week we will start one of the most important debates of the year -- outlining an economic recovery plan to create jobs and invest in America. And in the coming weeks, we will be working to protect homeowners and consumers, make America more energy independent, strengthen our national security, and improve health care and educational opportunities. There is much work to do and a lot at stake. It is thus critical that Illinois and every other state have two seated Senators without delay.
"We again urge Gov. Blagojevich to not make this appointment. It is unfair to Mr. Burris, it is unfair to the people of Illinois and it will ultimately not stand. The governor must put the interests of the people of Illinois and all Americans first by stepping aside now and letting his successor appoint someone who we will seat."
---------------------------------------------------
Rod Blagojevich's choice to fill Barack Obama's Senate seat, Roland Burris, helped raise money for the governor on multiple occasions.
The former Illinois Attorney General gave $4,500 to Blagojevich's campaign fund in the form of personal donations and donations from -- what appear to be -- him and his wife, according to Illinois State records. The most recent donation came on June 27, 2008, when the governor was knee-deep in charges of ethical misconduct.
Burris also attended high-end Blagojevich fundraisers on at least three separate occasions, according to a review of
newspaper filings by the Huffington Post. Most recently, in July 2008, he was in a crowd of 1,000 at the Chicago's River East Art Center when Blagojevich -- beset by ethics scandals -- hosted one of six events to raise money for his campaign fund (which had suffered because of mounting legal bills).
In April 2006, Burris hosted a 3,000 person event in the main hall of Chicago's Field Museum. That event saw Blagojevich soliciting donations of $1,000 for "sponsors" $2,500 for "patrons," $5,000 for "benefactors" and $10,000 for "co-chairs," according to the invitation.
In July 2005, Burris was one of more than 1,000 people who attended Blagojevich's annual political fund-raiser. That year, the governor -- who had defeated Burris in the gubernatorial primary just three years earlier -- raised a reported $4 million.
That Burris showed up at these events and donated to the governor's campaign would not, under normal circumstances, be remarkable. Neither is the extent of his own donations, which are relatively paltry by Illinois standards. After all, Democrats help fellow Democrats.
But Blagojevich was mired in ethics complaints at the time of the latter fundraisers. Moreover, the governor stands accused of attempting to sell the Illinois Senate seat in a pay-for-play scheme. To achieve complete legitimacy, anyone appointed to take Obama's seat will need to have offered no financial help whatsoever to the governor.
Burris, as noted, has been a recent critic of Blagojevich, calling on the governor to relinquish his post in light of his recent arrest. But he wasn't always that much of a thorn in his side.
In March 2006, as the Chicago Sun-Times was reporting on growing criticism of the governor's political tactics, the former A.G. was quoted as saying:
"I can't see how anyone can say he (Blagojevic) is not governing," Burris said.
"I think he is doing a helluva job."
lol:
