The Jan. 2nd editorial "Won't work" pontificates "By accepting [Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich's appointment, [former Illinois attorney general Roland] Burris has sadly allowed himself to be used by an unscrupulous politician who is trying to stay out of jail, let along (sic) trying to keep his office." It also accuses the governor of "cynicism" in appointing Burris who is Black.
WATCHDOG: Since the article starts out by invoking "chutzpah", let us note that religions recognize that all sacraments, even by a corrupt clergy person, are valid.
Also, our legal system operates on the theory that a person is innocent until proven guilty. In addition, the federal prosecutor has just asked for a three months extension for filing full charges. Talk is not necessarily guilt or we would have 50 million rather than 2 million in prison.
And what is "cynical" about appointing an African-American to replace the only African-American in the Senate? It was expected.
As governor, Burris is required under law to make an appointment, otherwise the people of Illinois would be underrepresented in the Senate.
Lastly, shouldn't the issue be Burris' qualifications to be senator, rather than Blagojevich's to be governor?
We get into trouble when we ignore the law out of emotion. If Blagojevich is guilty, impeach him and / or send him to jail. But if Burris isn't more tainted than most of the other politicians who made it to the Senate, seat him and let's get on with dealing with far more serious problems.
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Watchdog, the media criticism and analysis column at Newslanc.com.
