I guess it should have come as no surprise to me that Governor Blagojevich defied the people once again and went ahead with an appointment to the Senate. What did surprise me, however, was that Roland Burris was foolish enough to accept it.

I’ve never had issues with Burris-as a matter of fact, had I voted in the Democratic primary several years ago when he was up against Blago, I would have picked him. He has an excellent record from his many years holding elected office, and his integrity, to my knowledge, has never been questioned.

But I have to wonder why someone with integrity would accept an appointment in this situation when it is well known that the people of Illinois (and beyond) do not want Blago involved in the process. It almost appears as though Burris wants to be in the Senate so badly that he’s willing to exchange his integrity and reputation for the seat.

As for Bobby Rush, I resent the proverbial “race card” being played in this situation as well. I won’t deny there is a need for African Americans in the Senate-and perhaps they should be looked at first when it comes to appointing a replacement for President-Elect Obama. However, this is NOT the way to go about doing it. Trying to force us to accept this appointment based on race feels like extortion.

Why do I have the feeling this was all orchestrated between Blago and Rush, using Burris as their pawn? The sad thing is, I would have had no objection to Burris being selected under different circumstances. Actually, I would have been quite pleased with the choice. But right now, there is no way I will support or accept this coming from Blago. And quite frankly, I doubt I would be willing to support Burris in the future, should his name happen to come up again.

Update: Check out Burris’ crypt in Oak Woods Cemetary (thanks to @KyNamDoan for the find)

EXCELLENT article by John Kass at the Chicago Tribune. His feelings were very close to mine, yet he is much more eloquent at expressing them in print!