Durbin: Senate won't seat Burris without signature

Casting new doubts on Roland Burris' nomination to the U.S. Senate, Sen. Dick Durbin today said Senate rules still bar Burris from taking office despite an Illinois Supreme Court ruling that characterized his appointment as "valid" under state law.

Declaring legal opinions on the matter at an "impasse," Durbin (D-Ill.) said it is best for the Illinois Senate to move forward with its impeachment trial of Gov. Blagojevich, wait for the governor to be removed and hope Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn can name a Senate appointee everybody can agree on.

Durbin did not rule out that Quinn's appointee could be Burris, but he also said it is premature to discuss whom Quinn might pick. Durbin talked to Burris this afternoon, and said Burris has a different interpretation of the Supreme Court's ruling than Durbin does.

At a separate news conference today, Quinn was asked repeatedly whether he would appoint his own U.S. Senate nominee if he takes office, but the lieutenant governor sidestepped the questions.

"I really don't think that's the issue that's confronting the people of Illinois today. And I'm not in that position, and I think it's presumptuous to say otherwise. I've already made my position clear about the governor appointing anyone to anything. Whether it's U.S. Senate or any other position, I don't think the governor should do that," Quinn said.

Beyond issuing a prepared statement praising the state Supreme Court ruling, Burris has not spoken publicly about today's developments.

But his lawyer indicated the former attorney general has no plans to give up his fight.

"We're ecstatic with what the Supreme Court has done today. All along we've said this appointment is complete," said Timothy Wright, Burris' lawyer. "What's left for us to do is get him admitted."

The lawyers faxed a second round of paperwork to the Senate on Friday and plan to have it hand-delivered on Monday, but they are prepared to go back into court if those efforts fail.

"One of our options is going into U.S. District Court," Wright said. "That's an option that's been around. We're not looking to do that."

In today's state Supreme Court ruling, the court unanimously decided Secretary of State Jesse White does not have to sign Senate paperwork Burris needs to be seated as the state's junior U.S. senator, though it called his appointment "valid under Illinois law."

The 7-0 opinion muddies Burris' political future and throws the matter back into the lap of the U.S. Senate. Citing rules that date back to the late 1800s, the Secretary of the Senate in Washington has held that Burris needs White's signature, along with the state seal and Gov. Blagojevich's signature, on a particular Senate form in order to be seated.

But the state's high court held that White was under no statutory or constitutional burden to do that for Blagojevich's controversial U.S. Senate appointee.

"The secretary of state had no duty to sign and seal the certificate of appointment issued by the governor in this case," Justice Lloyd Karmeier wrote in the court's opinion.

The fact that White filed in his office Blagojevich's letter announcing Burris' appointment means "No further action is required by the Secretary of State or any other official to make the Governor's appointment of Roland Burris to the United States Senate valid under Illinois law," the opinion said.

However, if additional proof is needed in Washington, the justices suggested that Burris simply go to White's office and get a certified copy of Blagojevich's appointment letter -- something a representative from the governor already did today. That certification document, which costs $2, would accompany the governor's signed letter and contain a stamp with White's signature and the state seal.

"A copy of it is available from the secretary of state to anyone who requests it," Karmeier wrote, saying that alone negated Burris' call to force White to sign any additional paperwork.

The only catch, however, is that it isn't in the exact format the Senate requires, which puts the dilemma back in the lap of the U.S. Senate.

After today's ruling, White reaffirmed his stance that he has fulfilled his legal obligation to "register" the governor's paperwork in his office reflecting the intent to appoint Burris and stuck by his refusal to sign the exact Senate paperwork Burris needs to present in Washington in order to be seated.

"I want to be clear that I could not and will not in good conscious sign my name to any appointment made by Gov. Rod Blagojevich to fill the Senate vacancy. This governor was arrested in part for trying to sell this very same Senate seat," White said in a prepared statement.

Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who represented White in the lawsuit Burris filed against him, said, "It is clear that Secretary White is not the roadblock to Mr. Burris' appointment to the U.S. Senate. It remains within the power of the U.S. Senate to seat Mr. Burris. They should do so immediately."

After Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) vowed not to seat Burris, sentiment had been swinging in his favor in recent days as support for him came from several key Senate Democrats, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Ca.).

Black lawmakers and groups such as the NAACP also have stepped up efforts to preserve Burris' nomination because he would be the only black in the U.S. Senate.

Burris appeared before a House impeachment panel in Springfield Thursday and offered information about his appointment that appeared in conflict with a sworn affidavit he had presented earlier in the week to the committee outlining his appointment.

Burris' sworn affidavit stated he had not met with any "representatives" of Blagojevich about the Senate appointment prior to Dec. 26. But Thursday, under questioning, Burris said he spoke with former Blagojevich chief of staff and college classmate Lon Monk about an interest in the post and asked that Monk relay that information to the governor.

Contributing: Jordan Wilson