Curious what everyone thinks. Reid denied him access to the Senate today. Burris says he will consult with lawyers and may sue to be seated. There are two Constitutional arguments - one in favor, one against. On the one hand, Amendment 17 says that the executive of a state has the sole authority to appoint Senators in the event of a vacancy. On the other hand, Article I, Section 5 says, "Each House shall be the judge of the elections, returns and qualifications of its own members."
This sets up a very interesting legal battle that may well end up in the Supreme Court. My vote is that Burris will be denied. The plain language of Article I, Section 5 gives the Senate the power to disqualify Burris, that's how I read it. Of course, it sets up a dangerous procedural precedent that could be used in the future to block someone for purely political reasons. Should be interesting to watch. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;207172674;29440083;f Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-community/message.cfm/messageid:283944 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-community/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.5
