Chris Kennedy apparently isn’t letting the fizzled bid of cousin Caroline Kennedy discourage his own political aspirations. Chris Kennedy, who is the son of the late Robert F. Kennedy, is pulling together a squad to help him launch a run at the U.S. Senate, CNN is reporting. “He is building an organization and telling family and friends that he is in fact going to be a candidate for the Senate from Illinois,” said the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Christopher Joseph Kennedy, an Illinois businessman has been president of Merchandise Mart Properties, Inc. in Chicago since 2000. Kasey Madden, Kennedy’s spokeswoman, acknowledged that he “has conducted polling which indicates a strong interest, but there is no timeline for a decision or an announcement.” Another CNN source, however, told the network that Kennedy’s political allies are telling state Democrats that he will indeed seek the Democratic nomination for the seat once held by President Obama. The seat currently is occupied by Sen. Roland Burris, a Democrat and former state attorney general, who was appointed to fill Obama’s unexpired term by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. But Illinois Democrats never conveyed their blessings on the appointment of Burris – because of his link to Blagojevich, who has since been impeached. Chris Kennedy’s father, Robert, represented New York in the U.S. Senate before being assassinated in 1968. His cousin, Caroline, had hoped to represent New York in the Senate but folded up her senatorial aspirations earlier this year amid rising speculation that she would not be chosen by the governor to fill Hillary Clinton’s vacant seat.

 Former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris isn’t getting much love from President-elect Barack Obama or members of Congress these days, but scores of African-American clergy are lining up to support the controversial appointment of embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich. On Sunday, about 60 ministers were called together by Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.), who has been critical of his fellow Democrats in Congress for rejecting Burris. Read the rest and see video here.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Sunday that the U.S. Senate has the legal authority to block Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s appointment to replace Barack Obama. Blagojevich, who has been charged with trying to sell Obama’s now vacant Senate seat, defied the demands of Obama, Reid and other Democrats who asked him to forego naming a replacement because of the cloud that would hang over the selection. Speaking on “Meet The Press” Sunday, Reid said that the U.S. Constitution gives senators the power to “determine who sits in the Senate, and the House determines who sits in the House. So there’s clearly legal authority for us to do whatever we want to do. Read more here.

While few Black leaders argue about the qualifications of former state Attorney General Roland Burris, who was appointed by scandalized Democratic Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich to fill Barack Obama’s vacant U.S. Senate seat, there is wide disagreement over whether the governor should have been the one to make the appointment. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) is one lawmaker who vehemently called for an African American to replace Obama, so that Congress’ upper chamber would not lose its only Black senator. But everybody isn’t so sure that Blagojevich’s appointment should stand. “I understand Congressman Rush’s concern about having an African-American senator, but there are concerns about the cloud that has gone on regarding the current governor,” Rep.  Gregory W. Meeks (R-N.Y.) told The Washington Post. “His qualifications are impeccable, his name has not been involved in scandal, but that has to be considered.” Karen A. Yarbrough, an Illinois state representative who represents a district just outside of Chicago, said: “I don’t think this governor should be appointing.” But National Urban League President Marc Morial questioned the power of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to stamp out the appointment, telling the Post that Reid’s authority in the matter is “very, very limited.”
 

 President-elect Barack Obama and congressional Democrats were in lockstep Tuesday in their rejection of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s appointment to take the U.S. Senate seat once occupied by Obama. Democrats had made it clear that they wanted Blagojevich to relinquish his power of appointment given his current legal problems. The governor is accused of trying to sell the Senate seat to the highest bidder. Federal investigators say they taped Blagojevich discussing the worth of the seat. But in a surprise move on Tuesday, the governor defied the Dems and named Roland Burris, a 71-year-old former state attorney general to take Obama’s place in the Senate. Read the rest here.