Rolled by Roland?

The affable Roland Burris was out and about on the Hill again today, as the political winds of a Washington January started to shift decidedly in his favor. He held his second press conference in as many days, regaling the press with tales of Jimmy Carter's endorsement and keeping a straight face while calling Harry Reid a "charming" man.

The sheer gumption of Blago and Burris, combined with Bobby Rush's dirty work dropping the race card while Roland was left to schmooze his way through town- the whole thing has left Senate Democrats flummoxed, and the rest of the nation thoroughly entertained by the antics of the 111th Congress.

Right now, Burris' seating sounds contingent on two things: 1) An Illinois Supreme Court decision about whether Illinois Sec. of State Jesse White's signature on a certificate of election is absolutely necessary for his seating, and 2) Burris' testimony in front of the impeachment committee in Illinois about his involvement with Blagojevich.

White had refused to sign Burris' certification back when everyone was tossing him around like Sen. Hot Potato. Now, that he's Sen. Hot-to-Trot on the Hill, laughing with reporters, meeting with Reid and Durbin, and getting distant compliments from Obama, White is changing his tune, too. He now suggests that the Senate is using him as a "fall guy," and could have seated Burris without his signature.

Durbin urged the Illinois Supreme Court to act quickly on this matter. Seating Burris without a signed certificate would open the door to doing the same for another would-be Democratic Senator- Al Franken, who will have to wait until Norm Coleman's lawsuits have run their course to get his from the state of Minnesota. Reid is, of course, anxious to seat Franken regardless of Coleman's legal contests, but seating Burris without a certificate would make that awkward display of Tuesday look even more silly and counterproductive than it already does.

Assuming Burris' testimony for the impeachment committee in Illinois is forthcoming, and reveals that he was involved in none of the pay-to-play antics of Blago, it seems Harry Reid is more than happy to move on this:

"He's going to go answer any other questions they might have. He's not trying to avoid any responsibility and trying to hide anything," said Reid (D-Nev.) "Once that's done, we'll be in a different position and see what we are going to do."

The "taint" both Reid and Obama alleged would imperil any appointment made by Blago suddenly sounds like it will be wiped out by Burris' cooperation in the impeachment proceedings. My, how things have changed. This is Reid's take on a Blago appointment from a letter he and the Democratic caucus drafted the week of Blago's arrest:

We write to insist that you step down as Governor of Illinois and under no circumstance make an appointment to fill the vacant Illinois Senate seat," the letter reads. "In light of your arrest yesterday on alleged federal corruption charges related to that Senate seat, any appointment by you would raise serious questions."

Oops. Obama's past statements are equally forceful:

"Roland Burris is a good man and a fine public servant, but the Senate Democrats made it clear weeks ago that they cannot accept an appointment made by a governor who is accused of selling this very Senate seat. I agree with their decision, and it is extremely disappointing that Governor Blagojevich has chosen to ignore it. I believe the best resolution would be for the Governor to resign his office and allow a lawful and appropriate process of succession to take place. While Governor Blagojevich is entitled to his day in court, the people of Illinois are entitled to a functioning government and major decisions free of taint and controversy," said President-elect Obama.