Senate opposition fiercer than Burris thinks

WASHINGTON -- Roland Burris does not want to be in the face of the senators whose ranks he hopes to join, I am told. Yet Burris, appointed by the scandalized Gov. Blagojevich to replace President-elect Barack Obama, is expected here Monday. Burris' mere presence to try to claim the seat will, of course, be a spectacle.

He won't get into the chamber because the Senate Democratic leadership doesn't want anyone sent by Blagojevich, accused of trying to sell Obama's seat for a plum job or campaign cash.

Burris, the first African American to win statewide office in Illinois, may want to tone down the race rhetoric. The point has been made by Rep. Bobby Rush. Obama was the only African American in the Senate, and his departure for the White House leaves a void.

But Illinois voters -- unlike those in any other state since Reconstruction --have twice sent an African American to the Senate, Obama and Carol Moseley Braun. There is no reason to think that over time, Illinois will not send more minorities and, may I add, females to Congress.

David Axelrod, Obama's chief strategist, told me Thursday, "The president-elect has a high regard for Roland Burris. He simply doesn't believe the process by which he was appointed was appropriate, given the circumstances surrounding it."

Apparently, the president elect has made it known that he will not support Burris due to the opposition of Congressional Democrats including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.