Chappaquiddick cited in Burris defense

One of Sen. Roland Burris‘s (D-Ill.)
biggest defenders has suggested that Burris is the victim of a double standard,
referring to Sen. Edward Kennedy’s (D-Mass.) accident in Chappaquiddick in 1969.

Burris “hasn’t done anything
that’s indictable,” Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) told congregants at the New
Covenant Baptist Church on Chicago’s South Side on Sunday, fighting back
against critics who say Burris should resign.

{mosads}”There have been senators who
have been drunk, drove off a bridge, people died,” Rush said. “No
outcry for a resignation.”

Rush was apparently referring to the
1969 incident in which Kennedy’s car plummeted into a pond in Massachusetts,
killing a woman who was riding with him. Kennedy was subject to years of calls
that he resign his seat following the incident.

Rush also referred to “a
senator accused of misconduct in a men’s room,” apparently alluding to
former Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho), whose arrest in an airport bathroom in
Minnesota prompted more calls to resign.

The event at the prominent African-American church, where Burris won support from clergy and community officials,
came after weeks of constant calls for the newly appointed senator to step
down.

Following revelations that Burris
tried to raise funds for ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) in the weeks leading up to
his appointment, and that his conversations with the governor’s office were far
more extensive than he had previously disclosed, Gov. Pat Quinn (D) and several
members of Congress have called on Burris to step aside.

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) has not
called for Burris to resign directly, but has said Burris should think about
his future and the good of Illinois. Most major Illinois papers have
editorialized against Burris, saying he should leave his post.

Instead, Burris seems to have
redoubled his efforts, launching a campaign website in advance of a potential
bid for retainment in 2010, and on Sunday he promised churchgoers he would
continue to serve them.

“I will never, ever let you
down. I will serve you with honesty and integrity,” Burris said, according
to the Chicago Sun-Times. “That’s all I know, and that’s what God gave
me.”