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Roland Burris Undermined by Governor, Chief of Staff, and White House

  • 2/20/09 at 5:20 PM
Roland Burris Undermined by Governor, Chief of Staff, and White House

Photo: Getty Images

Senator Roland Burris has had a bad day. First, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn (the gentleman who replaced Rod Blagojevich, who controversially appointed Burris) publicly stated: “It’s better for Senator Burris to step aside.” Quinn was reacting to the conflict over Burris's apparent perjury during testimony before the Illinois legislature, and the resulting public fervor. Later in the day, White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs said in a press conference that President Obama wants an investigation into the perjury, and the senator should use this weekend to “think of what lays in his future.” Yipes! Hopefully broccoli. Anyway, even later this very same day, his Chief of Staff quit. Darrel Thompson had been dispatched from Harry Reid's office to help get Burris' affairs in order. Seeing, apparently, that this was impossible, he announced that he's moving back to Reid's office.

We'd say there's no way that Burris could try and stand tall through this kind of swampy mess, but that would mean we didn't learn anything from last time. We honestly have no idea what Monday will bring.

Burris Should Resign Senate Seat, Illinois Governor Quinn Says [Bloomberg]
WH to Burris: Think Again [Politico]
Darrel Thompson Jumps Off Burris Ship [Huffington Post]

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