January 07, 2009	Wednesday	Muharram 09, 1430

WASHINGTON, Jan 6: US officials on Tuesday refused to allow the man chosen by Illinois’s scandal-tainted governor to replace president-elect Barack Obama to be sworn in at start of a new Senate session.

“I presented my credentials to the secretary of the senate, and advised that my credentials were not in order,” Roland Burris said, after arriving at the Capitol building amid media frenzy.

“I am not seeking to have any type of confrontation. I will now consult with my attorneys, and we will determine what our next step will be,” Burris added.

He was picked last week to fill Obama’s vacant Senate seat by Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, who is under investigation for earlier allegedly seeking to sell the empty Senate seat to the highest bidder.

Obama has said he regrets Burris’s appointment and that the governor should instead resign.

Lawyer Timothy Wright said Burris now had several options, including further negotiations with top Senate lawmakers or seeking to win a court ruling.

He said Burris had not been allowed to go onto the floor of the 100-seat Senate or to take the oath of office.

“All of which we think was improperly done. And it is against the law of this land. We will consider our options, and we will certainly let you know what our decisions will be soon thereafter,” Wright said.

New senators elected in the November elections as well as the new House of Representatives were being sworn in today to take up their seats in the 111th Congress.—AFP