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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, On January 8, 2009, the current junior United
3 States Senator from Illinois, Roland Wallace Burris, testified
4 under oath to the House Special Investigative Committee on the
5 circumstances connected to his appointment to the Senate by
6 former Governor Rod Blagojevich; and
 
7     WHEREAS, While under oath, Burris responded to questioning
8 from Representative Jim Durkin; and
 
9     WHEREAS, Representative Durkin asked Burris whether he had
10 spoken about the Senate appointment with anyone "closely
11 related to the governor, including family members or lobbyists
12 connected with him"; and
 
13     WHEREAS, In asking Burris this question, Representative
14 Durkin listed six enumerated individuals connected with
15 Governor Blagojevich; and
 
16     WHEREAS, Speaking under oath, Burris answered this
17 question in the negative; and
 
18     WHEREAS, In an affidavit dated February 4, 2009, and
19 submitted to the chairperson of the House Special Investigative
20 Committee, Burris sought to revise and extend his January 8

 

 

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1 testimony to the Committee; and
 
2     WHEREAS, In this February 4th affidavit, Burris for the
3 first time revealed conversations with five enumerated close
4 advisors to Blagojevich, all of whom had been named in Durkin's
5 question to him, and with whom Burris had previously denied,
6 under oath, that he had spoken; and
 
7     WHEREAS, At the January 8, 2009 hearing of the House
8 Special Investigative Committee, several representatives asked
9 Burris whether there had been any "quid pro quo" involved in
10 Blagojevich's decision to appoint Burris to the United States
11 Senate; and
 
12     WHEREAS, Speaking under oath, Burris on January 8th
13 answered these questions in the negative; and
 
14     WHEREAS, On February 16 and 17, 2009, Burris made public
15 statements admitting to having discussed taking on a
16 fundraising role for the former Governor; and
 
17     WHEREAS, On February 17, 2009, Burris, speaking in Peoria,
18 Illinois, admitted to reporters that he had "called some people
19 about trying to see if we could put a fundraiser together" for
20 the former Governor; and
 

 

 

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1     WHEREAS, The contradictions between these statements made
2 by Burris under oath on January 8, 2009, and affidavits and
3 statements made by Burris since that time, raise questions
4 about Burris's veracity that have been referred to Sangamon
5 County State's Attorney John Schmidt for possible prosecution
6 for perjury; therefore, be it
 
7     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
8 NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
9 the Ethics Committee of the United States Senate should conduct
10 a thorough inquiry into the ethical questions raised by the
11 process through which Senator Roland Wallace Burris was
12 appointed by former Governor Rod Blagojevich to the United
13 States Senate; and be it further
 
14     RESOLVED, That this inquiry should include, but not be
15 limited to, the fact pattern briefly described in this preamble
16 and resolution; and be it further
 
17     RESOLVED, That if the members of the Senate Ethics
18 Committee believe, after an inquiry into the facts of this
19 case, that their duty requires them to recommend that the
20 Senate use the power granted by Section 5 of Article I of the
21 Constitution of the United States of America to expel a member
22 from their ranks by two-thirds vote, that the Senate, sitting
23 as a whole, adopt this recommendation and take action to expel

 

 

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1 Senator Roland Wallace Burris; and be it further
 
2     RESOLVED, That, if this event takes place, that the State
3 of Illinois enact suitable legislation to enable the people of
4 the State to select a new senator by special Statewide election
5 of the people; and be it further
 
6     RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this preamble and
7 resolution be presented to the Illinois delegation to the
8 federal House of Representatives and to the senior and junior
9 federal Senators from the State of Illinois.