Roland Burris Knows Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold
Via Susie, Roland Burris has decided to give the Democrats heartburn by standing up for a public option.
The Illinois Democrat, appointed by disgraced former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, says he’ll only vote for a bill to provide health care to millions more Americans as long as it allows the government to sell insurance in competition with private insurers.
And he says he won’t compromise.
“I would not support a bill that does not have a public option,” Burris, 72, said in a recent interview with The Associated Press. “That position will not change.”
Gee, I wonder why Burris takes such a strong stand?
Those words caught the attention of the very Democratic leaders who tried to keep Burris out of the Senate, suggested he resign and have shunned him in unprecedented fashion. Burris is not the only Democrat to insist on creation of a government-run health plan. But he is the one who has the least to lose by defying President Barack Obama and the Democrats who once turned him out in the cold rain…
What happened next was a procession of ugly images, from Burris’ rain-swept news conference after Democrats turned him away from a swearing-in to Illinois Rep. Bobby Rush daring Democrats to block an accomplished lawyer who would be the chamber’s only black.
Jane had the whole story back in January. It’s an ode to Reid’s cluelessness, and foreshadows Burris’s current refusal to bend:
Rather than call for a special election in Illinois, Reid sends a letter to Blagojevich signed by everyone in the Democratic caucus asking him to step down. They assert that they will not seat anyone he appoints… Blago wipes his ass with it and appoints Burris anyway.
Burris holds a press conference and announces he will be in D.C. on Tuesday to be sworn in with the rest of the Senate. Bobby Rush plays the race card. Reid does not see the handwriting on the wall.
He counters by calling Secretary of State Jesse White, who has already said he won’t sign Burris’s certification, and encourages him. What White is doing is most certainly outside his legal authority — the Secretary of State doesn’t have veto power. But Reid not only gives White a high five, he tells him they’ll use this to keep Burris from being seated.
Then he smugly chortles about how he’ll manipulate Senate procedure and punt to the Rules Committee, and assures everyone that they will drag things out for months if necessary until Blago is impeached and his successor appoints someone else. And he does it in the press….
[Blago] leaks to the press that he spoke with Reid before the election, and that Reid didn’t think any of the African American candidates vying for the seat were “electable,” while Tammy Duckworth was. He stirs up the potential jury pool and makes Reid look like an idiot — the day before Reid is set to appear on Meet the Press…
Burris appears at the Senate on Tuesday. Gets turned away. Could Reid look any worse?
Yes!
Reid can’t hold his own caucus in line. Blames Rahm. Gives interview saying “I don’t work for Barack Obama…
WaPo: “Burris Backs Reid Into a Corner.”
A seventy-one year old dude who hasn’t held office for 14 years, appointed by a crook, takes the Senate Majority Leader to the cleaners.
So everyone pretended that Roland Burris is the only corrupt person in the Senate, railing that he’d lied about raising money for disgraced Governor Blagojevich. OH THE HORROR. Really what they were mad about was that Burris got caught: it’s not like Tom Carper, Blanche Lincoln, Evan Bayh, or Harry Reid are paragons of virtue, pure as the driven snow. As my grandmother used to say, “all politicians steal. The difference is that when the Democrats steal, they leave a little for you to steal too.” Well, real Democrats anyway: not like the greedy pigs listed above.
I especially enjoy Burris’s shit-eating grin, his sheer glee at causing heartburn for th eleadership, which would MUCH rather enact “reform” that does nothing but creative a captive market for Big Insurance:
“I’m a senator from Illinois representing 13 million people. I’m one of 100, and I speak on the floor, I preside over the Senate, I co-sponsor legislation… I’m very busy, I’m very challenged, and I have one problem: I enjoy what I’m doing.”
I want to play poker with Harry Reid too.
October 20th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
Oh yes! I’m really getting a kick out of this, it’s about time someone stuck the shizzle in the dizzle. Weeeeee….
Here’s a song my dad used to sing to make me smile when I was down. For some reason it keeps going through my head.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LxC3M-Yngs&feature=related
It’s yours. For free. Really.