Governor Quinn Calls On Burris To Resign

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn has called on Senator Roland Burris to resign and for his seat to be filled by a special election.

"I think Roland Burris should step aside and resign," Quinn said at a news conference late Friday morning. "The best thing for Illinois-- the people he loves--is to step aside."

Quinn said the latest questions about Burris' contacts with impeached former Gov. Rod Blagojevich have placed "a cloud over [Burris'] head."

"I think it was mistaken to accept the appointment under the cloud [under which] it was received. ... I think the ongoing controversy, all the different affidavits correcting this and that, underline the importance of stepping aside."

Quinn said he supports a House bill that calls for a new Senator to be elected within 115 days of a vacancy. In the interim, Quinn said he should be able to appoint a temporary replacement who would not seek reelection or in any way campaign for another term.

Quinn urged Burris, whom he called "honorable" and a good friend, to step down as quickly as possible for the good of the state and the country.

"This should not be a matter that takes weeks. ... The common good is really what we need to focus on in Illinois today. The office does not belong to the officeholder."

Quinn said he wished the Senate had never allowed Burris' appointment and reiterated his earlier claims that Burris should never have accepted the appointment because of the taint surrounding former Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Comments

[sdried]

Right on Governor Quinn! His ascent is the only silver-lining in the whole Blago fiasco!

[notajoiner]

Burris should have waited until after Blago was cleared or condemned before going after this office. I thought, this man is just trying to create more problems by appointing a person that appears only to be racking up points for his epitath on his tomb stone . After all said and done he did try to pay to play........give it up Senator Burris ..........your entire life rep is at stake.

[changeme09]

3 strikes, you're OUT Burris. Just resign

[jeffrey678]

NO ONE ASKED NORM COLMAN TO RESIGN. WHY? NO ONE ASKED TED STEVENS TO RESIGN WHY?

[AlwaysaLiberal]

Because it doesn't matter when republicans do it. /snark

[sunshinedem]

Actually everyone called on Ted Stevens to resign...even Sarah Palin told Ted Stevens to drop out during the campaign.
Burris is only being called out because he accepted a nomination from a corrupted governor and things aren't looking so great for him.

[docallen001]

Burris is an example of the move of this country to being guilty until proven innocent. I live in IL and I am not at all convinced that the new gov. Pat Quinn will turn out to be a person of outstanding character. He just hired as a staffer a person he has known for a long time who happens to have had ties to Tony Resko.

[AlwaysaLiberal]

You can't indict someone for having ties to somebody. This Burris thing is asinine.

[sunshinedem]

No, but you can indict them for lying under oath about whether or not the governor's brother asked for campaign funds.

[berrycooda]

Talk about Illinois politics.....

Let Burris alone....he was only trying to protect himself and get to
be a Senator like a lot of other people do.

He didn't kill anybody or cheat on his taxes or sleep with some prostitute
or hire his family to work in his office or any of the other things that
a lot of politicians get away with it. He just wasn't as good at it as they
are.

Time for Illinois to get on with their business and quit wasting time trying to impeach everybody. There is a lot more going on in Chgo.
I wonder who they want in place of Burris.. Blago is out and now they already replaced him....who is next for Burris' job.

[Neal Patel]

There is no chance Roland Burris is going to resign. Not gonna happen. Removing office through expulsion is a bad idea- It will look like the US Senate is trying to hang or fry him.
The state legislature in Illinios should schedule an early Special Election - Primary on the day after Labor Day of 2009 and general election on November 2009. similar situation in Texas in 1993 when Lloyd Bentsen gave up his US Senate Seat to become Treasury Secretary- appointed Senator Robert Krueger lost to Kay Bailey Hutchison. Burris loses the special primary election - the winner of the Democratic senate primary wins the general election. gets seats in November 2009 - has an incumbency advantage in 2010.

[Opygollopy]

Luvial - Please, take your pills. Why are you blaming everything that is wrong in the U. S. on the Democrats??? Were you in a coma for the last 8 years. Apparently so. But look at the bright side, since you are having a nervous breakdown due to the Republican ineptitude, isnt it nice that you will get medical coverage, unemployment benefits (since you cant work cuz u are mentally ill) and no one will yell back at you because you dont pick on people who are intellectually challenged.

Take your pills like a good patient. Good night. Go to sleep for another 8 years and when you wake up, the Democrats will have fixed all those things that Bush destroyed.

[Luvial]

You think it will take 8 years? You may be right.

[AlwaysaLiberal]

It's destroyed right now. Your republicans messed it up in the past 8 years. Snap out of it!!!

[chancho24]

Burris and his precious mausoleum...

[maddie0001]

Did I miss the part where Burris was convicted? Otherwise this is just a bunch of people crying for the only black guy in the all-white club to be kicked to the curb. White guys at least get a trial and conviction. Let the republicans do their own dirty work.

Coverage of corruption has hypocritical scent
John Kass
February 20, 2009
African-Americans like the hapless Sen. Tombstone, or Cook County Board President Todd Stroger, the Urkel of local politics, deserve the thwackings they get. When Burris or Stroger give a foolish non-answer, that or even a no-comment becomes news, evidence of their nefariousness. Not so with the much pinker bosses, like Mayor Richard Daley or Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Lisa's Daddy), two bullies who believe in democracy as long as they can play king.

Burris' few lies to a state impeachment committee are nothing compared with the hundreds of millions devoured by corruption in the Daley administration. And Madigan still hasn't been held to account for his flunky, state Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie (D-Madigan), holding onto the bombshell Burris affidavit—the one in which Burris revealed his earlier lies under oath—by slipping it into her desk drawer.

Now is not the time for deference to the powerful. From now on, when a politician lies, maybe we'll get in their face, black or pink, powerful or weak, puppet or puppet master.

[DWSouthern]

Roland Burris was once a decent black man and public servant, but he long ago reached or overreached his capacity a la the Peter Principle. Thereafter he strove in vain to go higher up the political ladder to no avail. When Blago offered him the senate seat, he couldn't resist, tainted as the offer was. Hopefully, he will have the good sense to resign, but don't count on it anymore than we could count on Blago to resign. He will probably hang on, unless prosecutor Fitzgerald has the goods on him, and he will go down to ignominous defeat in the Democratic primary in 2010. Whatever he gets, he is deserving for all the discomfort he has caused Obama.

[Luvial]

Burris testified under oath that he was asked to raise money for Blago. Then he said he did not raise any money. Then he admitted that he tried but no one would give him any money for Blago. Then Harry Reid and Obama let Burris become a Senator. The Democrats are corrupt. The Republicans are corrupt. The laws do not apply to the rich or the politicians. We need to clean house, except we have thrown out of our houses.

[Mekarri]

Luvial, go back to listening to rush. How did reid and PRESIDENT Obama let burris become a Senator? First of all President Obama has nothing to do with this. Reid made it clear that he didn't want burris in that seat but as I understand it, there wasn't much they could do about it. People like you and the MSM have always tried to drop this mess in President Obama's lap. But you and your ignorant party LOST. But just keep whining, maybe someone will care but I doubt it. LOL!

[Luvial]

Laugh all you want, but your excuses for Obama do not make sense.
Obama had "nothing to do with this"?
"Reid made it clear that he didn't want burris"
"wasn't much they could do about it."

Who in the world allowed him into the Senate? Is no one in charge of the Senate?
Burris replaced Obama's seat in the Senate. It is ludicous to suggest that the President had nothing to do with his replacement. That implies that the President is incompetent. Maybe it is another shrewd move by Rahm Emmanuel, eh?

Are you blaming me?? DId the MSM allow Burris into the Senate. You are typical of Obamabots and now even Obama, neither want to take any responsiblity for their actions. Blame someone else. You can't blame Rush or the Republicans so you blame me and MSM. Pathetic.

I voted for Obama. I have not listened to Rush in 15 years. Obamabots love to spin disgust by fellow Democrats as if we are Republicans. Responsible Democrats and progressives are abandoning Obama's sinking adminstration.

Obama=Bush that's why. Obama is doing nothing for the middle class. Obama is doing the same thing Bush was doing. Trillions for corrupt moneylenders, nothig for home owners.

[Luvial]

Obama is sending our troops on more tours of duty even though the mission is unknown, the troops are committing suicide in record numbers because of the multiple tours of duty, we cannot afford to waste trillions more on a lost war, 50% of all domestic violence arrests in America are veterans of Bush/Obama's wars.

Obama is losing credibility everyday.

How many million$ did Allen Stanford give to the Clintons? To Pelosi? To Obama? Why are none of these criminals being arrested? Are they friends of Bush??

"But just keep whining" Millions of Americans are suffering while Obamabots make up every excuse under the sun for the lack of any direct support for those families. Trillions of tax dollars for corrupt moneylenders and trillions of excuses from Obama and his supporters.

[ObamacratInCA]

The sitting Governor of Illinois was legally required to fill the vacant Senate seat. If he were ethical, he would not have. If Roland Burris were ethical he would have listened to the request of the Senate leadership and the President-elect and waited until a new Governor was appointed.

Sen. Reid, Sen. Durbin and President Obama all implored Burris to wait. He didn't. He's going down and it could not have happened to a slimier person.

[ADVOCATE4ZPG]

A BLACK (Afro-Amer­ican....?) HACK is still a HACK: Burris is NO diamond in the rough awaiting his chance to gleam in daylight. He allowed himself to be used in last moment of defiance by Rod Blagojevitch who knew that Burris' only political asset was race!

[steamboat]

Where is Bobby Rush? ........Why isn't he screaming 'white conspiracy'?

[ObamacratInCA]

Roland Burris lied on his application and at his interview for a job he wanted so bad he could taste it.

If this were the crew chief position at MacDonald's it might not matter so much but this is the Senate and it's a seat once-occupied by the third black Senator since Reconstruction, who went on to become the first African-American President in history. Burris didn't earn the seat. He took every ethical shortcut he could to get it and disgraced it. Now he has one last chance to redeem himself. He needs to pack up his ethical baggage, conflicting affadavits and tombstone chisels to clear the way for a better Senator and a better Democrat.

[macbabe]

Do the RIGHT thing.. step down please.