I might not think much of Blago, but Burris has a job to do

This controversy over Sen. Roland Burris in the US shouldn’t even be news. I am not sure why he has not been seated in the Senate to be sworn in to represent the people of Illinois.
   I was going to preface this by saying that as I am not an American, I don’t know as much about the laws there, but it’s pretty evident after many years online debating legal issues that I do know, and probably more so than the average person. For that I credit my years at law school and, in particular, Prof Sir Geoffrey Palmer, for my knowledge of public law.
   One thing I do dislike about the legal profession is the jargon, so let’s try to keep this one simple.
   As far as I can tell, the objection to Sen. Burris is his selection by Gov. Rod Blagojevich of Illinois.
   Gov. Blagojevich might not be the smartest guy on earth to talk about allegedly selling the senatorial seat on a tapped phone, but I was under the impression that in the United States, a person is innocent until proven guilty.
   Hence, the Governor has all the powers he normally would have, and one of them is naming someone to the vacant senatorial seat in his state.
   An innocent man with his normal powers names a senator, that senator goes to Washington to get sworn in, and the Secretary of the Senate bars him?
   On what grounds?
   According to the Chicago Tribune:

Senate leaders insist the appointment is tainted because Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who has tapped Burris for the seat, is accused by federal authorities of attempting to sell the appointment. Burris is not implicated in that alleged scheme.

   I might not think very highly of Blago but even I know there’s something called the Bill of Rights there in the US Constitution.
   And there’s such a thing as the separation of powers.
   On a procedural matter, I know that the secretary of state of Illinois, Jesse White, has refused to certify the appointment, but how often have procedural matters not prevented things from proceeding in American politics?
   I will say I have not read the legislation or procedural rules surrounding the seating of senators, so I will make that one caveat.
   And if we were to stop American politicians because they are tainted by corruption allegations, then let’s face it, no one would be permitted to walk through the Senate or Congress’s doors.