Burris' three-point defense

During a speech before the City Club of Chicago downtown Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Roland Burris stressed three points in his defense concerning his interactions with former Gov. Rod Blagojevich before his appointment.

The three points and what else you should know:

Burris' Points 1 & 2

"Yes. Yes I told people around the governor that I wanted to serve in the Senate... No, I did not have conversations about my appointment - I'm talking about actually being appointed - with anyone other than the governor's attorney."

What else you should know:

In Burris' first affidavit about his appointment, he stated "there was not any contact between myself or any of my representatives with Governor Blagojevich or any of his representatives regarding my appointment to the United States Senate" before the governor's lawyer offered the post after the chief executive's arrest.

In testimony to lawmakers a few days later, Burris said he talked to former Blagojevich chief of staff Lon Monk about his interest. Burris also said he talked to "friends" about it. When asked who else he approached, Burris said "I can't recall."

In an affidavit released last weekend, Burris said he talked to three of Blagojevich's top staffers, a union official close to the governor, and the governor's brother, who raised money for his brother's campaign, about his desire to seek the appointment.

Burris is making a distinction in his defense about conversations he had about his actual appointment and those involving his solicitation of that appointment.

Burris Point 3

"Yes. The governor's brother reached out to me as he'd done over the years to do fundraising. But I did not give one single dollar to the governor."

What else you should know:

Burris told reporters on Monday he actually tried to raise money for the governor but couldn't and then after that told the governor's brother it would be wrong to raise money while seeking the appointment.

Burris, most recently a lobbyist with clients who won state work, has long been a contributor to the governor.

In fact, he told reporters Monday he brought up his desire to be appointed to two top Blagojevich staffers at a fundraiser in late June where he donated money to the governor's campaign.