Heck, no, Burris won't go -- despite Durbin urging him to do so
SPRINGFIELD - Saying the people of Illinois want "this Blagojevich burlesque" to end, Sen. Dick Durbin added his voice Tuesday to the loud chorus of politicians across the country calling for embattled Sen. Roland Burris to resign.
"I told him I would consider resigning if I were in his shoes," Durbin said to reporters following an hourlong meeting with Burris in Washington, D.C. But, Durbin added, "I can't force him out."
Burris said he would not resign, Durbin said. A spokesman for Burris said the junior senator would have no additional comment.
Durbin and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, allowed Burris to take his seat in the Senate only after he testified before an Illinois House committee investigating then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
"I was disappointed that his testimony in Springfield was not more complete," Durbin said. "The fact that he did not volunteer the names of people like Rod Blagojevich's brother, and others, is troubling."
Durbin said he advised Burris, a Democrat from Chicago, to not take the Senate appointment from Blagojevich in the first place. "My advice obviously doesn't move him," Durbin said.
Burris did not reveal whether he planned to try to win election to the Senate in 2010, Durbin said. But "it would be extremely difficult for him to be successful in a primary or general election," Durbin added.
In addition to Durbin, a Democrat from Springfield, Republican Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana said Tuesday Burris should resign for his ethical shortcomings. Vitter recently avoided Senate sanctions for allegedly soliciting a prostitute because the activities in question took place before he was a senator.
In Illinois, Gov. Pat Quinn, Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias and Comptroller Dan Hynes, all Democrats, have also called on Burris to resign. Illinois Republicans also said Burris should resign.
"The United States Senate should immediately follow Durbin's lead and remove him," said Andy McKenna, Illinois GOP chairman.
Burris has come under intense pressure to resign for failing to disclose that he tried - but failed - to raise money for Blagojevich before the disgraced former governor appointed Burris to President Barack Obama's vacant U.S. Senate seat. Burris also now admits speaking to several Blagojevich cronies in trying to get the seat.
In sworn testimony and legal statements in January, Burris said he spoke only to Blagojevich's lawyer before the appointment. In an affidavit this month Burris admitted many more contacts with Blagojevich pals. The U.S. Senate ethics committee and a Springfield prosecutor are investigating whether Burris lied under oath.
Burris' attorney Timothy Wright is preparing a document intended to explain apparent contradictions in Burris' statements. Wright did not return a call for comment Tuesday.
Numerous state lawmakers also have said Burris should resign. State Rep. Jack Franks, a Democrat from Marengo, who served on the House investigative committee, has introduced a resolution urging the U.S. Senate to expel Burris from the body.
A Senate expulsion is unlikely. In U.S. history, 14 out of the 15 expelled senators were kicked out for supporting the Confederacy during the Civil War. Two-thirds of the U.S. Senate would have to approve an expulsion.
Burris is the only African-American member of the Senate.
State Sen. Matt Murphy, a Palatine Republican, believes lawmakers can order a special election using inherent powers under the 17th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. However, Gov. Quinn said on Friday such a move would end up in court and wasn't certain to work.
Instead, Quinn urged legislators to pass a new law allowing the governor to make a temporary appointment for Senate vacancies until a special election can be held four months later. Quinn dismissed complaints a special election is too costly.
"In a democracy, you don't say we don't have the voice of the people heard because it costs too much," Quinn said.
Daily Herald wire services contributed to this story.