"I will not be accepted, I will not be seated," Burris told a mob of reporters who had followed him across the street for a news conference in a cold and steady rain outside the Capitol.
The former Illinois attorney general said he was "not seeking to have any type of confrontation" over taking the seat that he was appointed to by embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich. But Burris, who would be the Senate's only black member, also said he was considering a federal lawsuit to force Senate Democrats to seat him.
A change we can believe in. Rod B. denied a say, but not a role. The role of spoiler to a Camelot dream, perhaps, a Kennedy for every opening, perhaps.
More on that thought later. For now, figure that Harry Reid wants a strong campaigner with a basis of appeal and support to build an interim record now and then run and keep the seat Democratic - with potential based on name, charisma, charm and of course an interim record of influential progressive leadership; with the GOP arguably poised to run a strong contender for that Illinois Senate seat. (Thanks for that insight, Gary, it gives all of us perspective beyond immediate reactions to be thinking over while wondering what is playing out in Illinois and in the Senate.)