I don't know much about Roland Burris except for his monument to himself and I really think Blagojavich is guilty, but... If the law says the governor can appoint a senator and since Blogojavich is still governor, Burris has been legally appointed and it is not up to Harry Reid to decide whether or not to seat him. Why he's taking such a stand on something that doesn't really matter that much when he bends like a silly straw over illegal wiretapping doesn't fool me. He's still a wimp.

It's legal. The court has said it's legal. Stop the silliness. Seat IL junior Senator Roland Burris and stop the nonsense and playacting!

A governor who is under federal investigation for a quid pro quo scheme regarding the appointment of a senate seat... should not be allowed to make that appointment while he is being investigated. It is a conflict of interests, and it does not serve the state of Illinois.

It's not rocket science.

The guy is way too meek and doesn't have enough foresight to predict situations like this. Either he changes his mind and looks weak or he goes against logic (and the wishes of Obama) and looks stupid. Either way he needs to let someone else lead the Democrats in the Senate.

The legal fact is that Burris has as much right to sit as a Senator as Reid does.

Reid is throwing a fit because he didn't get his way, and sadly, Reid has never bothered to stand up against Bush as much as he has tried to keep a Democratic Senator from being seated.

It's just bizarre.

This could be solved pretty quickly if Illinois' Lt. Governor would endorse Burris as Senator. Of course, he seems to hate Blago so much that getting him to do anything that would reduce the impact of the governor's incompetence might be asking too much.

Burris seems like a respectable choice. Not a homerun, but there's no taint on the man except that he agreed to serve when Blago asked.

congress tried to keep Adam Clayton Powell from being seated and he had actually done some nefarious deeds, unlike Burris. The Supreme Court ruled and found that congress had no valid case, since all key criteria for his seating were met under the law.

The Senate has even less cause this time, to seat Burris.

So please dems, end this PR disaster and do the right thing. NOW!

Reid needs to stop talking smack he can't back up. He painted himself and the Senate Democratic caucus into a corner when he didn't have to on this issue.

The problem is that being 'under investigation' means absolutely nothing.

You may as well say that if a person is accused of something by Rush Limbaugh, then they should have to resign.

The fact is that the furor made him pick someone who was fairly innocuous, and probably a 'get back' to the Dems for not supporting him. Burris doesn't stand a snowball's chance in hell of getting re-elected, so the Dems are going to be embarrassed once again in '10 when they have to push support a $$ rainmaker against him in the primaries.

But the fact is that Blogo was perfectly within his rights and (indeed) responsibilities to appoint whoever he wanted.

The ultimate fault is with the people of Illinois.

Reid should but the hell out (and hopefully be defeated as Speaker if here were any real justice.)

Burris sent an innocent man to death row. He even insisted on prosecuting him after somebody else confessed to the crime. DNA evidence exonerated the wrongly imprisoned man--after 11 years. Apparently Burris thought that sending an innocent man to death row would help him become Governor of Illinois.

What do the Democrats think will happen if Burris isn't seated? The world won't end. His supporters will complain, and then they'll get over it and move on. Burris is scum who was appointed by scum. If the Democrats can't even take control of an issue as clear-cut as this one, then they are even more pathetic than I thought.

Burris sought the death penalty for an innocent man. That alone should disqualify him.

Except this isn't anything so innocuous as something pundits like Limbaugh are saying. Blagojevich is under investigation by a federal prosecutor, and has been indicted by the Illinois legislature. That's an entire order of magnitude more serious, and should be treated as such.

If you're suspected of skimming funds out of the church offering plate, they're not going to let you count the money until all that's settled, even if you're innocent.

If you're suspected of doing inappropriate things to children, they're not going to let you run a daycare until you're cleared of that, even if you're innocent.

Yes, you're innocent until proven guilty, but these are things to keep at least the appearance of impropriety out of their respective sensitive situations. It's common practice, and nobody sane really thinks the suspected child molester should be teaching kindergarten while his trial is going on just because he hasn't been convicted.

So why is Blagojevich different? He's suspected of selling a senate seat. The feds hauled him in on corruption charges. The Illinois legislature impeached him. How does it benefit the state of Illinois to allow him to do the very thing he was suspected of being dirty on? How does that keep the public faith in the office and the process?

Or maybe, just maybe, we should be sensible here and not let Blagojevich appoint a senator until his name is cleared.

I mean, is this really so unreasonable?

I don't like Blago. I don't like Burris. But it doesn't matter, since i don't live in Illinois.

I have no standing, just as the Senate really has no grounds not to seat Burris. He's the legally appointed Senator, and should be sworn in on Monday.

We're a nation of laws. The law has dictated a process for the appointment of an interim Senator, and it seems to have been followed. Yes, there's taint -- but there's a process for that, too. It's called Democracy.

No need for the Senate to protect Illinois from themselves: They elected Blago, and get to live with their decision until such time as he (maybe) stands trial and is convicted. If they don't like Burris, they'll have ample opportunity to rectify the situation at the ballot box.

Reid is embarrassing. He's played this like a complete amateur.