How is Roland Burris playing in the blogosphere? Not totally just as a punching bag, as you might expect. But not well, either.
More importantly, some solid analysis is providing nuance to mainstream media reports.
For example, on his Capitol Fax Blog, Rich Miller actually lends some support to Burris's contention that the line of questioning during his testimony before the state House impeachment panel did go off in a different direction before he could fully reply to a query about contacts he had with people in and around the Blagojevich administration regarding the vacant U.S. Senate seat he was seeking.
"Durkin clearly changed the subject," Miller argues. "Durkin moved on to another subject. Period.
"Should Burris have offered up information about his other contacts with several Blagojevich insiders about the Senate seat? Absolutely. Was he legally obligated to do so considering how the questions were asked at the impeachment committee hearing? No." On the other hand, Barbara Morrill on Daily Kos combed the transcript and found an even more damning passage than than ones that have been highlighted in media accounts so far.
"REPRESENTATIVE TRACY: So you don't recall that there was anybody else besides Lon Monk that you expressed that interest to at that point?
"MR. BURRIS: No, I can't recall."
That was the follow-up that Miller blames Durkin for not posing.
Politico raises another possible avenue for investigating the matter. "Somebody is going to bring an ethics complaint against Roland Burris in the United States Senate," said one Illinois Democratic insider. "How could you not? He took office under false pretenses."
Lev at Battlestar-Pegasus also provides some insight: "What I find interesting is that this guy has absolutely nobody looking out for him. His patron is gone in disgrace. The Democratic leadership in the Senate doesn't care for the guy. He has little of a base in Illinois politics outside of the Black community, as evidenced by his umpteen failed runs for higher office. I doubt Barack Obama is going to intervene to save his hide, and the racebaiters like Bobby Rush have had their fun and now they're done. If it begins to look as though he can't win re-election, he's going to find everyone arrayed against him."
