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Burris says no 'pay to play' in Senate appointment

Burris

By Todd Feurer, Illinois Public Radio

Springfield, Ill. – Former state Attorney General Roland Burris says there was no "pay to play" in his appointment to the U.S. Senate.

Burris told an Illinois House committee Thursday that he spoke with Governor Rod Blagojevich only one time before he was appointed and they only discussed his qualifications.

But State Representative Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, says he was disappointed Burris found nothing suspicious in the the appointment being first offered by the governor's attorney.

"Here's a guy who's a former attorney general of Illinois," Rose said. "And the governor's criminal defense attorney or somebody who's been held out as the governor's criminal defense attorney shows up in your house and offers a United States Senate seat. Doesn't something in the back of your mind go 'Huh. What's going on here?'"

Even so, Burris' testimony should move him a step closer to joining the U.S. Senate.

Senate leaders say he must also get Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White to sign his appointment paperwork. That issue remains tied up in court.

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