On Dec. 30, the governor went ahead and named Roland Burris, the former state attorney general, to fill the seat. Fuggedaboudit, said Reid. No way, agreed the president-elect.

That was then. This is now.

He served 12 years as state comptroller and four as attorney general. But he lost Dem primaries for Senate (1984) and governor (1994, 1998, 2002) as well as for mayor of Chicago in 1995. But he may finally be getting something he really wants.

 

A 45-minute meeting between Burris and Senate Dem leaders Reid and Dick Durbin on Wednesday has seemingly resulted with everyone on the same page: Burris will be the next senator from Illinois, apparently; it's just a matter of dotting the "i"s and crossing the "t"s.

When Burris showed up at the Capitol the other day, he was turned away by the Secretary of the Senate because of incomplete credentials. His certification from Springfield included the signature of the governor but not that of Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White. White refused because Blagojevich is under federal corruption charges.

(Still, that didn't keep White from adding his signature when Blago the other day proclaimed the date of a special election to fill Rahm Emanuel's former House seat. White is, if nothing else, pro-choice.)

Following their meeting with Burris, Reid and Durbin did a cya by saying that of course they would love to have Burris join the club, but a rule in effect since 1884 requires both signatures for a senator to take his/her seat, whether it's by election or appointment. It's not about Blago making the appointment, they now said. It's about that missing signature from the secretary of state. The rule has never been waived, they said. 1884! 1884!

But is it ironclad? First of all, the Senate language only says the signature of a secretary of state is "recommended." White himself is quoted as saying, "My signature is not required. My signature is mostly ceremonial, rather than being a point of law." So much for Reid's new argument. In any event, the Illinois Supreme Court is expected to rule on that today. Burris will also appear today before a state House committee discussing the possible impeachment. Illinois lawmakers will no doubt grill him on how the appointment came to pass and stuff about his his relationship with the governor. Both sides of the Burris struggle have indicated that once the court rules, and once Burris testifies, the roadblocks to his taking the Senate seat should vanish.

The beginning of the end of the Democratic wall against seating Burris came Tuesday when Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), the outgoing chair of the Rules Committee, said this: "If you don't seat Mr. Burris, it has ramifications for gubernatorial appointments all over America. Mr. Burris is a senior, experienced politician. He has been attorney general, he has been comptroller, and he is very well-respected. I am hopeful that this will be settled."

Feinstein had also raised eyebrows the day before by questioning the apparent choice of Leon Panetta as Obama's next director of the CIA. The new chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, she was apparently peeved that Panetta's name was leaked without her having been first consulted.

She ran for governor once before. Is she thinking about it again?

Her back-to-back, off-the-reservation comments surprised many political watchers, and some are wondering if this is not the prelude of a potential announcement that she has had enough of Washington and wants to go back home to run for governor. She ran once before, in 1990, losing to Republican Pete Wilson, and some think she never lost the bug. But she's 75 years old, and California state government is currently in a mess. Something perhaps to watch for.

Whatever, her words indicated that Democratic solidarity against accepting Burris might be melting away.

And there is the race factor.

Both Reid and Durbin expressed unhappiness over how race has become part of the conversation. Both stated that race had nothing to do with this, and Durbin quoted Burris, who is African-American, saying the same thing. I agree. I don't think for a second the legal roadblocks for Burris taking a Senate seat has anything to do with race. It's been all about Blagojevich, no more, no less. Yes, it should be noted, that with Obama departing the Senate, there is no longer a black senator, but that is secondary. Some have speculated that Blago named Burris for this very reason, daring the Senate to reject a black candidate. And Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) pitched in on the topic, urging the Senate "to not hang or lynch the appointee as you try to castigate the appointer" and daring lawmakers "to go on record to deny one African-American from being seated in the U.S. Senate."

Rush's playing the race card was unmistakable, and unsurprising. And if he made the Democratic establishment uncomfortable, so be it. Perhaps he was also taking a jab at Obama as well. Remember, back in 2000, when Obama was a relative political unknown, he decided to take on Rush in the 2000 Democratic primary. Obama may have figured that Rush, coming off a disastrous challenge to Mayor Richard M. Daley in 1999, was vulnerable. Obama figured wrong; Rush clobbered him.

And maybe there was something sad about Burris being so eager to serve in the Senate that he would accept the nomination from someone so discredited. Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL), long thought to be interested in the Senate appointment who is also African-American, said Blagojevich offered him the seat first but turned it down. Good for him.

But Davis is happy for Burris and wants him to be senator; in fact, as he said to NPR's Neal Conan during the Wednesday Junkie segment on Talk of the Nation, when he turned down the offer from Blago's emissary he urged Burris be picked in his stead.

And it was a bit surreal watching Burris, a diminutive and unassuming man, try to bring his credentials to the Senate, only to be turned away. And then have to hold a news conference outside, in the rain. He almost appeared sympathetic.

And that photograph, of Burris speaking to the press in the rain under umbrellas, which was on the front page of so many newspapers across the country, may have been what changed the dynamic here and what forced Reid and the Senate leadership to back down. Reid ultimately looked bad in the process, but I sense it's a temporary blip. The pressure, should he finally get the seat, will now be on Burris. If he wants to hold onto the seat in 2010, has only 14 months to make a strong impression before the Democratic primary ... a primary that, as of late, done him any favors.

Let's look at the record:

1976 -- got crushed in the Democratic primary for state comptroller by Michael Bakalis, 72-28%.

1978 -- with Bakalis leaving for a gubernatorial bid, Burris again ran for comptroller. He defeated John Castle (R) to become the first African-American to be elected statewide in Illinois history.

1982 -- re-elected comptroller over Cal Skinner Jr. (R).

1984 -- ran for the U.S. Senate, finishing second in the Democratic primary to Rep. Paul Simon, who won the seat.

1986 -- re-elected comptroller over Adeline Jay Geo-Karis (R).

1990 -- elected attorney general when the incumbent, Neil Hartigan (D), sought the governorship. Burris defeated Jim Ryan (R).

1994 -- ran for governor, finishing second in the Democratic primary to Dawn Clark Netsch.

1995 -- ran for mayor of Chicago, losing to incumbent Richard M. Daley, 60-36%.

1998 -- ran for governor, finishing second in the Democratic primary to Rep. Glenn Poshard.

2002 -- ran for governor, finishing third in the Democratic primary won by Rep. Rod Blagojevich.

Vice President Richard Nixon declares his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination.

Today in Campaign History is a daily feature on Political Junkie.

One person to watch: seven-term Congressman Roy Blunt of southwest Missouri, a Republican and father of the current governor, who might be tempted into a race to succeed him.

Other Republicans who might be interested: Congressman Sam Graves, former Sen. Jim Talent and Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder.

The Democrat most often mentioned for the seat: Robin Carnahan, the secretary of state.

Bond was first elected to the Senate in 1986, succeeding Democrat Thomas Eagleton, who retired.

1986: defeated Harriett Woods 53-47%
1992: defeated Geri Rothman-Serot 52-45%
1998: defeated Jay Nixon (now governor) 53-44%
2004: defeated Nancy Farmer 56-43%

Prior to his Senate tenure, he was elected governor in 1972, defeated for re-election by Joe Teasdale in '76, and beat Teasdale in '80. Before that he was state auditor.

Bond would be the third GOP senator to opt out of seeking re-election in 2010. Mel Martinez of Florida called it quits on Dec. 2, and Kansas' Sam Brownback long ago announced he would quit after two full terms; Brownback is looking at the governorship.

P.S. Bob Levine of St. Louis, Mo. reminds us in the comments below that Bond also ran for Congress in 1968, losing to Rep. William Hungate (D) by a 52-48 percent margin.

Rep. Richard Simpson (R-PA), the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee and the ranking GOPer on the House Ways and Means Committee, dies at 59 following brain surgery.

Today in Campaign History is a daily feature on Political Junkie.

-- What to do with Roland Burris?

-- On what side of the bed did Dianne Feinstein get up from this morning?

-- What changed Jeb Bush's mind about seeking the Senate seat?

-- Will the American public have the patients for Sanjay Gupta?

-- Will President-elect Obama fill in the blanks at his morning news conference?

The good news: I will not be reading any poems on today's program.

Remember, the Political Junkie segment airs every Wednesday at 2 p.m. Eastern time on Talk of the Nation, NPR's call-in program, where you can often, but not always, find interesting conversation, useless trivia questions and sparkling jokes.

And remember, if your local NPR station doesn't carry TOTN, you can hear the program on the Web or on HD radio. And if you are a subscriber to XM/Sirius radio, you can find the show there as well (siriusly).

(You can listen to the Dec. 24 show, our year in review, here.)

Wanna be on the Junkie mailing list? Sign up at politicaljunkie@npr.org.

Politico's Jonathan Martin reports that Jeb Bush, the former governor of Florida, will not run for the Senate seat of retiring Republican Mel Martinez. Martin quotes Mario Rubio, the ex-state House speaker, as saying Bush felt "it just wasn't the right timing." Rubio himself now looks likely to run, writes Martin:

Rubio, a close Bush ally who was waiting on the former governor's decision, said he would now "seriously explore the opportunity."

"I'll be meeting with family and supporters in the weeks ahead and make a decision shortly there after."

Rubio will visit with Republican campaign officials in Washington next week ahead of a likely bid.

Roll Call's John McArdle lists several House members who are considering the race, including Connie Mack IV (R), Allen Boyd (D) and Ron Klein (D). McArdle adds, "Most insiders remain focused on whether the state's chief financial officer, Alex Sink, will run. Sink is a moderate who is the only elected statewide Democrat."

Florida Democratic state Chair Karen Thurman said in a statement that she is confident her party will win the Senate seat: "Over the past several years, Democrats have made major gains in Florida winning three of the six statewide elections. On November 2, 2010, Florida will be electing another strong Democrat to the U.S. Senate, who will work to implement President-elect Barack Obama's vision of change and join Sen. Bill Nelson in representing the Sunshine State in the tradition of Bob Graham and Lawton Chiles."

Back to Jeb: I never felt that Jeb Bush had a great desire to come to Washington, let alone serve in the Senate. But both his father, the former president, and his brother, the current president, have talked up the prospect of Jeb for Senate in recent days.

It would have been Jeb, the legend goes, rather than George W., who was elected president in 2000, had Jeb not lost to Democratic Gov. Lawton Chiles in 1994. There have always been whispers that Jeb was the family favorite, as well as the smarter politician. But in '94, as Jeb was losing in Florida, George W. was unseating Ann Richards in Texas. And by 2000, he -- not Jeb, who wasn't elected gov until 1998 -- was on the fast track to the GOP presidential nomination.

The other piece of news comes from The Washington Post's Howard Kurtz, who reports that President-elect Obama has offered the post of surgeon general to Dr. Sanjay Gupta, the neurosurgeon and CNN correspondent, who apparently wants the job. Kurtz offers more:

The final vetting process is under way. He has asked for a few days to figure out the financial and logistical details of moving his family from Atlanta to Washington but is expected to accept the offer. ...

The offer followed a two-hour Chicago meeting in November with Obama, who said that Gupta could be the highest-profile surgeon general in history and would have an expanded role in providing health policy advice, the sources said. Gupta later spoke with Tom Daschle, Obama's White House health czar and nominee for Health and Human Services secretary, and other advisers to the president-elect.

The Michigan-born son of Indian and Pakistani parents, Gupta has always been drawn to health policy. He was a White House fellow in the late 1990s, writing speeches and crafting policy for Hillary Clinton. His appointment would give the administration a prominent official of Southwest Asian descent and a skilled television spokesman. ...

Gupta's only hesitation in taking the post is said to involve the financial impact on his pregnant wife and two children if he gives up his lucrative medical and journalistic careers. But he is expected to accept the position within days.

The offer, if it is made, comes after CNN anchor Lou Dobbs was not offered the job as homeland security secretary.

In the Senate, it's 55 Democrats, 41 Republicans, and 2 independents. Two seats remain vacant: in Illinois, where Barack Obama (D) resigned following his election as president and the Senate has thus far refused to accept the nomination of Roland Burris (D) as his successor, chosen by Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D); and in Minnesota, where no winner has yet been declared in the race between Republican incumbent Norm Coleman and Democratic challenger Al Franken. Franken currently leads by 225 votes, but Coleman is vowing a legal challenge.

For organizing purposes, assuming both seats will ultimately be filled by Democrats (that's our guess), it will be 59 Democrats and 41 Republicans.

There are still changes that will take place in the Senate, not in party but in names:

-- Colorado. Sen. Ken Salazar (D) will resign to become secretary of the interior. He will be replaced by Michael Bennet (D), who was appointed by Gov. Bill Ritter (D).

-- Delaware. Sen. Joe Biden (D) will resign to become vice president. He will be replaced by Ted Kaufman (D), who was appointed by Gov. Ruth Ann Minner (D).

-- New York. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D) will resign to become secretary of state. She will be replaced by a still-to-be-determined appointee of Gov. David Paterson (D).

In the House, it's 256 Democrats and 178 Republicans. One seat, Illinois' 5th, is vacant, following the resignation of Rahm Emanuel (D) to become White House chief of staff. The primary to fill this overwhelmingly Democratic seat will take place on March 3; the general election is April 7. Another seat, California's 32nd, will become vacant following the confirmation of Hilda Solis (D) as secretary of labor.

There are 54 new members of the House: 32 Democrats and 22 Republicans.

One was seemingly resolved on Sunday, when New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, the commerce secretary-designate, withdrew from consideration in light of an ongoing federal investigation into an alleged "pay for play" operation in the awarding of a state contract to a company that contributed to Richardson's political action committees. Still, some are wondering how the Obama team could continue with the choice of Richardson, given that the existence of the probe was well-known.

The news that Leon Panetta will be the next director of the CIA is not, at least not now, thought of as a mistake. But it does raise questions.

Panetta is one of the best-liked people in Washington, one with many friends on both sides of the political aisle, as well as with journalists. He served in Congress for 16 years, following his 1976 defeat of GOP Rep. Burt Talcott, and rose to become chairman of the House Budget Committee. He resigned in 1993 to become President Clinton's budget director and then his chief of staff.

But he has no experience in intelligence matters and has never served on the intelligence committee while in Congress. No doubt he dealt with intelligence matters as Clinton's chief of staff, but his expertise was always thought to be in budgetary matters, his skills always seen as political or managerial.

And that concerns some leading Democrats who will be dealing with intelligence matters in the 111th Congress. Incoming Chair Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) complained she was not consulted in advance of the pick and, according to the Los Angeles Times, indicated she might oppose it. "I was not informed about the selection of Leon Panetta to be the CIA director," Feinstein said. "My position has consistently been that I believe the agency is best served by having an intelligence professional in charge at this time." Feinstein is not known for grandstanding, nor is she known to have any personal problem with Panetta. It seems to be about qualifications.

A senior aide to Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), the outgoing chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, is also quoted by the Times as saying Rockefeller "would have concerns" about a Panetta nomination: "He's puzzled by the selection. He has concerns because he has always believed that the director of CIA needs to be someone with significant operational intelligence experience and someone outside the political realm."

Sen. Kit Bond of Missouri, the ranking Republican on Intelligence, also expressed skepticism over the Panetta pick.

Others were more supportive. Former Rep. Tim Roemer (D-IN), who served on the 9/11 Commission in the wake of the 2001 terrorist attacks, called it a "savvy" choice. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid described Panetta as "one of the finest public servants I have ever served with and dealt with."

Panetta, who has been a strong critic of CIA interrogation and detention methods, might receive a difficult welcome from old hands at the agency. But first he needs to win approval by the Senate.

For the record, Panetta's nomination is yet to officially be made. If confirmed, he would succeed Gen. Michael Hayden. At 70, he would become the oldest CIA director.

Other pols. Two other former members of Congress headed up the CIA. They were:

-- Porter Goss (R-FL), named by President George W. Bush in 2004; and

-- George H.W. Bush (R-TX), named by President Gerald Ford in 1976.

Postscript: Yesterday we speculated on some potential choices for commerce secretary in the wake of Richardson's withdrawal. NPR's Madeleine Brand interviewed Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, one of those on our list, who said she told Obama she was not interested in any administration position.

At a news conference held in the rain outside the Capitol building -- not long after Burris and his aides went to the Senate to make his case -- Burris, describing himself as the "junior senator from the state of Illinois," said his credentials were deemed not to be in order and he would thus not be seated today, when the 111th Congress is about to be sworn in. Nor would he be permitted on the Senate floor. He said he was not looking for any confrontation, and then added he would consult with his attorneys.

One of them, Timothy Wright, followed Burris to the microphones and called the Senate's action "improperly done" and "against the law of this land." Wright said he hopes the Burris team will "deliberate" with the Senate leadership about what to do next, and said he did not rule out taking the matter to court.

More to come.

A flip of the coin decides that E.L. (Bob) Bartlett will be Alaska's new senior senator and Ernest Gruening will be the junior senator. The two Democrats were elected on Nov. 25, 1958 after Alaska became the 49th State.

Today in Campaign History is a daily feature on Political Junkie.

Doesn't look like George Wal, oops, I mean Harry Reid blocked the doorway.

Burris is hoping to present his credentials when the new Senate gets sworn in at noon today. A press conference is expected soon. More to come.

 

But before we look ahead to what's in store for 2009, a look back at 2008, remembering those voices in the world of politics we lost. Among the departed are two Democratic members of the House: Stephanie Tubbs Jones, the first black congresswoman from Ohio, and Tom Lantos of California, the first Holocaust survivor elected to Congress. Hamilton Jordan helped elect a president, while Mark Felt helped take one down. The conservative movement lost an early voice (William F. Buckley), a no-nonsense senator (Jesse Helms), and one who left journalism for government (Tony Snow). Charlton Heston defended the gun lobby while Howard Metzenbaum fought it. Three members of Richard Nixon's "Enemies List" -- Paul Newman, Stewart Mott and Ed Guthman -- left us as well. As did President Truman's daughter and Obama's grandmother.

Presented here is a chronological list of those who died last year. It doesn't claim to be complete, but it includes many of those who made our lives more interesting and the world a better place.

Rep. Adam Clayton Powell (D-NY), who chairs the Education and Labor Committee, says that the attempt by the House to strip him of his seniority or chairmanship or remove him from office altogether is "motivated by the desire to politically castrate one of America's most powerful Negroes of his power." Powell is accused of financial improprieties.

Today in Campaign History becomes a daily feature, starting, um, today.

Trip Jennings writes in The New Mexico Independent that Richardson informed the Obama transition team about the federal investigation prior to his being named by Obama last month. But it's not that simple:

There is no indication that the probe will end soon. In fact, the federal grand jury asked to review evidence in the case during 2008 has been released from its duty, meaning a new grand jury empaneled this year must take up the case all over again, including witness testimony. And that could mean a drawn-out inquiry.

The surprising but shouldn't-have-been-surprising action: Richardson withdrew yesterday as President-elect Obama's choice for secretary of commerce. The New Mexico governor said he feared the investigation could prove to be a distraction to Obama and his new team. He denied any wrongdoing and said he would stay on as governor. (He is term-limited and cannot run again in 2010.) With "pay to play" coming under major scrutiny in Illinois -- albeit a bit late -- there was no way the new administration was going to allow a potential scandal to explode in its infancy. (For the record, no one is suggesting Richardson is a target of the investigation. But the investigation will no doubt look to what, if anything, the governor's office knew or did regarding the contributions and subsequent contract.)

The details: CDR Financial Products, based in California, made at least $110,000 in political contributions to Richardson's PACs. Not long after, it received a $1.48 million contract to work with the state. Coincidence? Absolutely.

Did he jump, or was he pushed? No one knows for sure. According to the New York Times' Sheryl Gay Stolberg:

Mr. Obama did not ask Mr. Richardson to step aside, associates close to both men said. But when Mr. Richardson offered to withdraw, the officials said, Mr. Obama simply accepted, without trying to persuade Mr. Richardson otherwise.

Now what: Richardson has to deal with the $450 million budget shortfall. It's one thing to travel the world's hot spots, meeting with world leaders. It's another banging heads with state legislators in Santa Fe.

Not so fast: Lt. Gov. Diane Denish (D) was measuring the drapes in the governor's office, having already named a transition team. She was long planning to run in 2010, but now it's unlikely she'll do so as an incumbent governor. Unless the investigation clears Richardson and he gets another administration post. Or unless there's more to the Richardson investigation than we know.

The next secretary of commerce? Some of the names suggested are those who were thought to be finalists for other Cabinet positions, such as Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius or Rep. Xavier Becerra of California. But the betting is that Obama could pick someone completely new out of the hat. (With Richardson gone, Latino groups may renew their lobbying efforts on behalf of Becerra.)

Gone but not forgotten: Other administration would-have-beens-but-never-were include Linda Chavez, President Bush's choice for labor secretary; Zoe Baird and Kimba Wood, President Clinton's choices for attorney general; and Theodore Sorensen, President Carter's choice to head up the CIA.

-- Bill Richardson withdraws: Obama gets his first embarrassment. It may be more than just embarrassing for Bill.

-- Illinois Senate: Did Blagojevich really name a Senate successor to Obama while we were on vacation? What was he thinking?? The latest on Roland Burris' chances to get confirmed.

-- Colorado Senate: Gov. Ritter has his say, and it's Bennet for the Senate. Not every Colorado Democrat is thrilled.

-- Minnesota Senate: Schumer says it's time for Franken to be sworn in. Not so fast, says GOP. So much for the era of post-partisanship in Washington.

-- This Day In Campaign History: A new daily feature starts today.

-- Fan mail from those who missed the Junkie blog: I'm kidding. Nobody wrote.

-- 2008 Obits: Our special feature on those in the political world who left us last year.

Welcome to 2009. I hope everyone had a healthy, safe and wonderful New Year's!