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Supreme Court ruling gives Burris the Senate seat, attorney says

Durbin disputes assertion that he is now a lock

By Dan Mihalopoulos | Tribune reporter

January 10, 2009

Just days after his prospective colleagues in Washington turned him back from the Capitol, Roland Burris seized on an Illinois high court decision filed Friday to assert he has all he needs to be accepted as President-elect Barack Obama's replacement in the U.S. Senate.

Armed with the Illinois Supreme Court ruling, Burris' lawyers vowed to return to Washington on Monday and file suit in federal court unless top Senate Democrats reverse their rejection of impeached Gov. Rod Blagojevich's choice for the seat.

"He is now the junior senator from the state of Illinois," said Timothy Wright, one of Burris' lawyers. "It's done."

Key senators did not immediately accept that legal view. Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, the state's senior senator and the assistant Senate majority leader, called a news conference in Chicago to argue that Burris still did not meet the criteria.

The Senate's Democratic leaders have balked at accepting Burris, citing the fact that Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White has refused to sign the appointment paperwork submitted by Blagojevich. In an effort to gain that signature, Burris' lawyers went to the Illinois Supreme Court and asked that White be ordered to sign the document.

The Illinois justices did not order White to do that, but their ruling Friday said there was no legal requirement that White sign the paperwork and that it was enough that he had simply registered the appointment of Burris.

Shortly after the ruling, White produced a document from his office affirming that he had registered the appointment. In a statement, he said had done everything required and "could not and will not in good conscience sign my name to any appointment made by Gov. Rod Blagojevich."

Burris' legal team said it sent a copy of the court ruling and the newly released document from White to Senate Democratic leaders.

At his news conference, Durbin said 125-year-old Senate rules demand that the secretary of state sign the appointment paperwork from Blagojevich, regardless of the Illinois court decision.

"At this point, we've clearly reached an impasse," Durbin said. "In this case, there is a missing signature under Senate rules."

Later Friday, however, Durbin and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada issued a one-sentence statement saying that they were seeking legal advice on how to respond to the paperwork from White.

Durbin called for leaving the Obama vacancy open while Illinois senators decide on impeachment charges approved by the Illinois House on Friday. Federal prosecutors arrested the governor a month ago, alleging that he abused his authority to fill the seat by attempting to sell it for personal gain.

According to sources, Obama urged the Senate leadership earlier this week to quickly settle the dispute involving his former job. On Friday, Obama's transition team sought to distance itself from the legal morass.

A senior official with the transition team who asked not to be identified said the Obama team's "philosophy" was that the Burris matter was an issue for the U.S. Senate, Illinois lawmakers and White.

"There's no need for us to engage," the official said.

Tribune correspondent Jill Zuckman in Washington contributed to this report.

dmihalopoulos@tribune.com