CHICAGO — Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) has acknowledged that he tried to raise campaign money for then-Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich of Illinois at the request of the governor's brother at the same time he was making a pitch for the Senate seat previously held by President Obama.
Burris' comments Monday night were the first time he publicly said he tried to raise money for Blagojevich. Previously, he left the impression that he balked at fundraising because of his interest in being named to the Senate -- an appointment that Blagojevich would make.
In comments to reporters after appearing at a Democratic dinner, the senator several times contradicted his latest sworn affidavit that he quietly filed with the Illinois House impeachment panel this month. The affidavit was an attempt to clean up his sworn testimony to the panel Jan. 8, which made no mention of his contacts with several Blagojevich insiders.
Burris said Tuesday that he was open to a Senate ethics investigation into how he got the Senate seat and that he had reached out to a prosecutor in the Illinois capital of Springfield who is reviewing Burris' testimony before the impeachment panel.
Illinois Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan called for the prosecutor to investigate Burris' testimony, and her father, state House Speaker Michael Madigan, forwarded Burris' testimony and affidavits to John Schmidt, the district attorney in Springfield.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) issued a less than ringing endorsement of Burris, saying he was hopeful that the Illinois senator wasn't trying to "avoid or mislead anyone" with his sworn testimony before an Illinois legislative panel that asked questions about how he was appointed to the post.
Reid, speaking at the dedication of a new brain research center in Nevada, said he had spoken to his top deputy, Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), who is traveling in Greece, about the Burris controversy.
Reid and Durbin had both made Burris' truthful testimony before the Illinois impeachment panel a condition for allowing Burris in the Senate. They initially declared they would not seat anyone appointed by Blagojevich.
"Durbin and I had two issues," Reid said. "No. 1, [Burris] had to have correct papers. He got that. No. 2, he had to meet with the state legislative committee that was doing the investigation and be honest with them in every manner. Now, time will tell whether he was. I hope he was. We're going to wait and see."
