Rod Blagojevich

How Damning Is The Burris Transcript?

Zachary Roth | May 28, 2009, 12:12PM

So what to make of the transcript of that phone call, released earlier this week, between Roland Burris and Robert Blagojevich, brother of the disgraced former Illinois governor?

The crux of the conversation -- which took place in mid November, before the then-governor's arrest -- involves Burris explaining to Blagojevich frere that he'd very much like to hold a fundraiser for the governor and otherwise help him politically, and is also interested in being named to Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat. But he's afraid of how things would look if he raised money for Blago, then got the Senate appointment. So he mulls organizing a fundraiser "in the name of" his law partner, for appearances' sake.

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Rod Blagojevich

Report: Burris Promised To Write Check To Blago

Zachary Roth | May 26, 2009, 5:50PM

The Blago-Burris affair has been simmering away quietly in the background for the last few months. And today brought some interesting news, via the Chicago Sun-Times.

Burris' lawyer said that last November -- about a month before Blagojevich picked him to fill Barack Obama's Senate seat -- Burris promised Blago's brother he'd write a check to the then-governor's campaign.

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Roland Burris

Burris' Day: Two Perjury Probes, and Calls For Resignation

Zachary Roth | February 18, 2009, 8:53AM

Yesterday was not a good day for Roland Burris.

First, he admitted that, contradicting the impression he had left over the weekend, he had tried to raise money for Rod Blagojevich after a conversation with the then-governor's brother. (That acknowledgement came on the heels of an affidavit Burris filed earlier this month which itself contradicted his sworn testimony to the legislature about conversations with Blagojevich's circle.)

Then, we learned that two investigations have been launched into the new senator's shifting explanations. One is described by the Chicago Tribune as "a perjury review," being conducted by John Schmidt, the local prosecutor in Springfield, and a Republican. Schmidt said he was acting on a request from Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan.

And the Senate ethics committee opened its own probe into the perjury question yesterday, The Hill confirmed.

Then late last night, the Tribune and the Washington Post went live with editorials calling on Burris to resign.

Like we said, not a good day.

Roland Burris

Burris Now Admits He Tried To Raise Money For Blago

Zachary Roth | February 17, 2009, 1:18PM

This is getting kind of ridiculous. Roland Burris has now admitted he tried to raise money for Rod Blagojevich, at the request of the former governor's brother.

The Chicago Tribune reports:

U.S. Sen. Roland Burris has acknowledged he sought to raise campaign funds for then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich at the request of the governor's brother at the same time he was making a pitch to be appointed to the Senate seat previously held by President Barack Obama.

Burris' latest comments in Peoria Monday night were the first time he has publicly said he was actively trying to raise money for Blagojevich. Previously Burris has left the impression that he always balked at the issue of raising money for the governor because of his interest in the Senate appointment.

In comments to reporters after appearing at a Democratic dinner, the senator several times contradicted his latest under-oath affidavit that he quietly filed with the Illinois House impeachment panel earlier this month. That affidavit was itself an attempt to clean up his live, sworn testimony to the panel Jan. 8, when he omitted his contacts with several Blagojevich insiders.

Here's the transcript of Burris' comments.

Rod Blagojevich

Burris Contradicts Sworn Testimony On Talking To Blago's Office

Zachary Roth | February 16, 2009, 2:03PM

Over the weekend, the Rod Blagojevich mess got even messier.

The Chicago Sun-Times reported on Saturday that Sen. Roland Burris admitted, in a signed affidavit, to having talked with several Blagojevich aides about the open U.S. Senate seat. That admission appears to contradict Burris' sworn testimony last month before the Illinois legislature.

In the affidavit, filed February 5th with a Democratic state lawmaker overseeing the impeachment proceedings, Burris acknowledged that he had talked about the seat to Robert Blagojevich, the governor's brother, as well as several other of the governor's advisers. Those conversations, according to the affidavit, occurred in October and November of last year -- both before and after the seat became available thanks to Barack Obama's presidential election victory. Burris wrote that Robert Blagojevich had asked Burris to make a political contribution to the governor -- which Burris says he did not do.

That appears to contradict Burris' testimony last month in front of state legislators, when he said that the only conversation he had had about the seat with a member of the governor's circle had been over the summer with Lon Monk, a former top aide to Blagojevich. That testimony occurred while Burris was fighting an active campaign to be sworn in as a U.S. senator, after Blagojevich had picked him for the seat.

At a press conference yesterday, Burris said he hadn't mentioned the other conversations in his testimony because he hadn't been asked a direct question about Robert Blagojevich. "At no time did I ever make any inconsistent statement," Burris said.

But according to the Associated Press, the transcript of Burris's testimony shows that he was specifically questioned about Robert Blagojevich, and consulted with his lawyer before responding.

There are also questions about the actions of State Representative Barbara Flynn Currie, the Democrat chairing the impeachment panel. Currie has said she received the affidavit shortly after Burris submitted it February 5th, but, believing it to be routine, she didn't read it or show it to others on the committee.

Illinois Republicans are now calling for a perjury investigation into Burris. As for Democratic leaders in the U.S. Senate, who could ultimately hold the key to Burris' fate, they seem to be taking a wait-and-see approach. A spokesman for Senate Democratic chief Harry Reid told the AP, "Senator Reid is reviewing the affidavit and will await any action by Illinois legislative leaders after they review the matter."

But in the short term, it's not clear what can be done. According to one expert who spoke to the AP, the state legislature could pass a bill calling for a special election, arguing that Burris' appointment was only temporary. But whether such a bill would gain sufficient support to pass isn't known.

Blago's fall was pretty quick. But cleaning up the mess he left may take a lot longer.