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Monday, Mar 2, 2009 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I told the folks at Chicago Public Radio that I’d post a link to their interesting “elevator pitches” page, and then I forgot.

Oops.

They explain the concept on their blog…

You are in an elevator with a candidate running for the 5th district. You are going from maybe the 50th floor to the lobby. You have about 30 seconds to hear why this person should represent you. That is the scenario behind our latest project on Eight Forty-Eight, which gave each candidate the opportunity to tell us why they should get your vote. The only parameters were to keep it short. Some were on topic, some were off topic, some were over-rehearsed, some were under-rehearsed.

And here’s the page itself. Please go take a listen.

* WBEZ also has raw audio of today’s comments by Gov. Pat Quinn regarding Sen. Roland Burris.

* Raw audio of Sen. Dick Durbin press conference is at this link. Ald. Dick Mell participates in that presser as well.

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This just in… Guv appears to cave on Burris

Monday, Mar 2, 2009 - Posted by Rich Miller

* 12:01 pm - Did the governor just cave on Burris? From the AP…

Gov. Pat Quinn says it’s time to move on from the flap over embattled U.S. Sen. Roland Burris and focus on the economy.

Quinn wants a special election for the Senate position, but said Monday he doesn’t think that can happen unless and until Burris quits. […]

Quinn met Monday with black elected officials on Chicago’s West Side, including U.S. Rep. Danny Davis.

Quinn says most of the meeting was about economic recovery.

Yeah, but the most important part of that meeting with Davis was surely about Sen. Burris. As I told you earlier today, Quinn seemed to be getting nervous about all the pushback from African-American leaders about his Burris position.

* Just last week, Quinn said this…

Gov. Pat Quinn said [on Jan. 26th] that if embattled U.S. Sen. Roland Burris doesn’t step down within the next two weeks, he wants lawmakers to send him a bill to set up a special election that could effectively remove Burris from office.

Quinn, appearing on “The Steve Cochran Show” on WGN-AM (720), said he spoke to the top two Democrats in the General Assembly [on Jan. 26th] about the possibility of moving ahead with the legislation, which would take advantage of a clause contained in the U.S. Constitution’s 17th Amendment.

Quinn’s actions follow a legal opinion issued [on Jan. 25th] by Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan who said she believed the state could enact a special-election law that would effectively force Burris from office. Under the Constitution, a governor’s appointments to fill Senate vacancies should be considered temporary until an election is held, she said.

The governor really needs to start thinking things through on this Senate crud. First, he was for a special election, then he was for an appointment, then he was for a Burris resignation and a new appointment followed by a special election, then he was for a special election regardless of what Burris decided to do. Now, he wants to drop the whole thing?

My head hurts.

…Adding… I forgot to mention today that the Tribune editorial page continues to bang the drum ever louder on the special election issue.

…Adding More… As with the post below, I am totally uninterested in angry drive-by comments on race. Put some thought into your comments or you’ll be swiftly deleted.

*** 12:53 pm *** Sen. Durbin was asked about Burris at a presser today in Chicago, and [from the way the story is written] appeared to back off as well…

Sen. Dick Durbin sounds resigned to fellow Illinois Democrat Roland Burris remaining in the Senate for the next two years.

Durbin has called for Burris’ resignation, but says he’ll still work with the embattled senator. Durbin says Burris has a vote in the Senate like everyone else and it’s an important vote. […]

Durbin says the economy should now be the most important issue at hand.

…Adding… The Durbin office sent over an audio clip from last week which shows that Durbin said pretty much the same thing to DC reporters then as he told Chicago reporters today. So, today’s alleged “news” is not really news, they say. I’m willing to give them that point.

*** 2:49 pm *** The prodigal son is welcomed back with open arms…

U.S. Rep. Danny Davis (D-Ill.) and Ald. Ed Smith (28th) said they were happy with the outcome of the meeting with Quinn, saying it’s time to get past politics and down to work.

“In the final analysis, we’ve got to put this issue behind us,” said Smith. “Roland Burris isn’t going any place, and we can talk about this until whenever, but Roland isn’t going any place. We may as well forget about this and deal with those issues that have to be dealt with.”

How very predictable.

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Burris upping the ante on race

Monday, Mar 2, 2009 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Back in January, Roland Burris said this…

”I have never in my life, in all my years of being elected to office, thought anything about race.”

* That wasn’t true, of course. From 1998…

Roland Burris, the Democrtic front-runner in the Illinois gubernatorial race, spent Wednesday fending off allegations that he had made race an issue in the primary campaign.

Burris, the only black candidate in the Democratic field of four, issued a cryptic response to reports that he told an African-American community group that his opponents are “non-qualified white boys.”

The allegations stem from a videotape of Burris that aired on a cable-TV community access channel and the local ABC affiliate in Chicago. Both stations dubbed out the words “white boys.”

* Burris kinda-sorta denied he said that way back then, but he’s going full tilt on the race card these days. As I told you last week, he’s hired a PR person who is playing up the race issue in a big way. And her strategy memo is now being played out in real time. First, it was the Chicago City Council’s Black Caucus…

In Chicago, members of the City Council’s Black Caucus held a news conference Thursday to defend Burris, the nation’s only black senator, and his son. Alderman Freddrenna Lyle said white politicians have not been similarly targeted for accusations of wrongdoing.

“We don’t want the seat to be denied Roland under circumstances not applied to someone else,” Lyle said.

More…

“I would just suggest to those people who seek to run in the wards of the city of Chicago where there are people of color living that they should tone it down because some of us are taking notes,” said Ald. Freddrenna Lyle (6th). “Those people will run at their peril.”

* And then over the weekend, Burris appeared with a group of ministers and Bobby Rush…

The ministers also said Burris, the only black U.S. senator, is being held to a different standard than the 99 white senators.

“He hasn’t done anything that’s indictable,” said Rep. Bobby Rush, who added that many politicians calling for Burris to resign have “stalking horses” ready for test-runs for his seat.

Now, there’s a campaign slogan for you. “He hasn’t done anything that’s indictable.” Yeah. Stick with that.

More from Rush…

Rush chastised the media and fellow politicians for “making something out of nothing.” He also suggested for Gov. Pat Quinn to work “night and day to get the state in order,” instead of calling for Burris’ resignation. “The state constitution worked for [Quinn]. Let it work for Roland,” Rush said.

* Gov. Quinn has always enjoyed significant support in the black community, but he now appears worried…

Gov. Pat Quinn on Friday called “unfortunate” a suggestion by a group of African-American aldermen that black voters may withhold support for politicians critical of beleaguered U.S. Sen. Roland Burris, saying he feared the return of a racial divide in the Democratic Party. […]

Quinn said he feared the controversy surrounding Burris would echo the “Council Wars” of the 1980s, when race divided the city’s Democrats.

And he’s clearly on the defensive…

Gov. Pat Quinn is defending himself - in the face of criticism from African American aldermen who say he’s trying to dictate to the black community by pushing Senator Roland Burris to resign.

First came the comments of African American aldermen, including Ed Smith of the 28th ward.

“Pat Quinn who we’ve known for years, all at once he decides that he’s going to dictate to us what should go on in our community.”

Governor Quinn has responded to that.

“Well, I’m not dictating to anyone. I think we have to do what is good for the people of Illinois. I think there should be a special election where the voters of Illinois hear all the candidates. If Roland Burris wants to run for a special election, that would be a way to let the people decide.”

* Some ground rules for comments on this matter: Hysterical, drive-by comments simply condemning the obvious are not welcome. Put some thought into what you write, please. I have zero interest in reading the same exasperated stuff over and over.

* Sen. Dick Durbin addresses racial issues in seating of Sen. Roland Burris

* Quinn renews calls for Burris’ resignation

* Burris should resign, this saga needs to end

* Can Senator Roland Burris be effective?

* Burris Fights to fit in

* Burris gathers with supporters Sunday

* Roland Burris Speaks to Supporters

* Burris says he’s working hard for Illinois

* Burris Speaks to Supporters Sunday

* Burris speaks out, ignores calls to resign

* Burris says he’s working hard to represent Illinois

* A plea for parodies…. LEAVE ROLAND BURRIS ALONE!!!!!!

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