Jeff Wartman

Looks like disgraced Senator Roland Burris wasn’t truthful with the people of Illinois after all…

On the same December day then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich named Roland Burris to fill President Obama’s U.S. Senate vacancy, Burris’ right-hand political man, Fred Lebed, phoned an associate and told him, “We’ll have to do some things for the governor.”

That’s the recollection of the associate, a health-care and political consultant named John Ruff, who went on to become one of Burris’ co-plaintiffs on a January lawsuit that sought to help Burris claim his Senate seat.

Besides raising new questions about a possible quid pro quo between Blagojevich and Burris, Ruff also recalled Lebed telling him he’d had discussions about Burris’ interest in the seat with Blagojevich representatives as far back as October. That claim by Ruff contradicts what Burris said in a Jan. 5 sworn statement that is now part of a state perjury investigation.

So why have the Democrats, both in Springfield and in Washington, given him a pass?  Remember, it was Harry Reid and Dick Durbin who said that they would not seat anyone appointed by Blagojevich.  Then, in a display of stunning political cowardice, Reid and Durbin caved in.

The Democrats then called for a special election to fill the seat.  Both the legislature and new Governor Pat Quinn were supportive of the idea.  Later, again in a showing of stunning political cowardice, both the Democrats in the state Senate and Pat Quinn withdrew support for a special election, effectively leaving in office a disgraced, unelected stooge.

Disgraceful.