In a letter of admonition, the U.S. Senate ethics committee said U.S. Sen. Roland Burris was "misleading" and "inconsistent" in his statements before an Illinois House impeachment panel and less than candid about his failure to disclose various contacts with Rod Blagojevich's administration.
Before the ethics panel's letter was made public, Burris put out a press statement indicating he was "cleared of legal wrongdoing."
The initial headlines went up.
And then ... the delete button.
In its Friday letter, the ethics committee said Burris gave "multiple and at times contradictory explanations for failing to disclose all your contacts with the governor's associates."
The ethics inquiry was launched earlier this year after the Chicago Sun-Times revealed that Burris' testimony before an Illinois House panel investigating Rod Blagojevich's impeachment lacked critical details about his dealings with the ex-governor's brother.
Burris added to his testimony in a written affidavit, which was first made public in the Sun-Times after the paper raised questions to the senator about his discussions with Robert Blagojevich.
The letter goes on to say that Burris' recorded conversation with Robert Blagojevich about fund-raising was "innappropriate," but did not rise to the level of an explicit quid pro quo.
But it faulted Burris with failing to disclose the conversation with the brother of the ex-governor before he was seated in the U.S. Senate.
"You should have known that any conversations you had about your desire to seek the Senate seat and about any possible fund-raising for the governor were critical to these inquiries," the letter stated.
The ethics panel said Burris didn't break the law, however: "Senators must meet a much higher standard of conduct."
Sun-Times editorial: "Burris lied, then lied about lying."
New York Times: 'A sternly worded rebuke.'
Chicago Tribune's Steve Chapman: "Burris is a lying snake."
Lynn Sweet: No charges coming

U.S. Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) was admonished Friday by the U.S. Senate ethics committee over his testimony in Springfield concerning how he got appointed to Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat. The committee's inquiry and subsequent reprimand comes after a Chicago Sun-Times investigation brought to light Burris' inconsistent statements before a panel weighing former Gov. Rod Blagojevich's impeachment.
In a sworn statement filed with the House panel Jan. 5, before he testified, Burris said he had no contact with Blagojevich's camp about the Senate seat aside from his appointment in late December of last year.
In testimony before the committee, he disclosed only that he spoke with Lon Monk, Blagojevich's former chief of staff.
Three weeks after he was sworn into his Senate seat, Burris filed a supplemental affidavit revealing he also spoke with Robert Blagojevich -- the ex-governor's brother and fund-raising chair -- as well as Blagojevich insiders John Harris, Doug Scofield and John Wyma.

The Sun-Times reported in October that the Senate ethics panel was still weighing action against Burris even after he announced he would not seek election next year.

More at SunTimes.com

"Today's ruling by Judge Zagel granting the Government's motion to hold a separate trial for my client from former Governor Blagojevich demonstrates what we have said all along - that there was never any justification for including Bill Cellini in any indictment with former Governor Blagojevich. "The allegations against former Governor Blagojevich have absolutely nothing to do with Bill Cellini. Months ago, Mr. Cellini executed an affidavit stating that he does not now nor has he ever had a relationship with former Governor Blagojevich. Mr. Cellini has never spoken on the telephone with former Governor Blagojevich nor has he ever had a substantive or private conversation with former Governor Blagojevich on any topic, including fund raising. Moreover, Mr. Cellini is a lifelong Republican who supported both Jim Ryan and Judy Barr-Topinka in their campaigns against Rod Blagojevich.
"Bill Cellini was never aware of, nor involved with anyone in the Blagojevich group in the alleged fund-raising scheme. Bill is completely innocent of these charges and will continue to vigorously fight these charges as he has done since the day he was indicted. Bill is confident that a jury will find him not guilty."

And then there were two.
Rod Blagojevich and his brother, Rob, will go to trial without anyone else next year after the government agreed to try Downstate businessman William Cellini separately.
Cellini was charged in 2008 with allegedly trying to shake down a movie producer seeking to do business with the state's school pension board.
When the former governor and his brother were indicted in April, prosecutors superseded their case onto Cellini's, creating speculation they were trying to "pick" their judge.
Cellini's lawyers from the beginning argued their client had nothing to do with the ex-governor's case and should be tried separately.
The government disagreed at the time.
But since then, two defendants in the case dropped out of the trial.
Two former aides charged in the case -- John Harris and Lon Monk -- each pleaded guilty.
But most significantly, Christopher Kelly, who died of an apparent suicide, is no longer part of the case. Prosecutors say Kelly was the bridge between Cellini and the former governor.
"It was the allegations and evidence against Kelly that provided much of the rationale to keep the defendants together in one trial," prosecutors wrote in a filing today. "As the government no longer needs to prove the allegations against Kelly, who was integrally involved in the activities underlying the charges against both Cellini and Rod Blagojevich, there is now significantly less overlap in the evidence that the government anticipates would be introduced against Rod Blagojevich and Cellini."
The government points out that Cellini is not charged in any count with either Blagojevich.
The matter is up before U.S. District Judge James Zagel next week.

Lon Monk's guilty plea Tuesday ramps up the pressure on Rod Blagojevich.
From the Sun-Times today: Blagojevich has repeatedly sought to distance himself from Tony Rezko, essentially claiming that Rezko duped him. Monk's plea not only puts the two in the same room, but it also alleges that Blagojevich gave both Rezko and Kelly free rein over his administration. Monk "understood that Blagojevich and [Monk] would use their power and authority in state government as needed to assist whatever plans Rezko and Kelly put in place to make money," the plea states.

From the Chicago Tribune: Pulling back the curtain on how Blagojevich and his cohorts allegedly went about their plan, Monk's plea suggests a possible pattern of political crimes that took place well before Blagojevich allegedly offered the Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama to the highest bidder. As part of his deal, Monk told prosecutors that he, Blagojevich and key fundraisers Antoin "Tony" Rezko and Christopher Kelly repeatedly met about how the four of them could secretly make money through state deals, offering the most specific account yet of how the alleged conspiracy in the case formed.

From AP: The plea is guaranteed to be a blow to Blagojevich, who is scheduled to stand trial starting June 3 on corruption charges that included allegedly trying to sell or trade the U.S. Senate seat President Barack Obama held.

Lon Monk, 51, of Decatur, said in his plea agreement that during the ex-governor's first term in office, there was an ongoing agreement among Blagojevich's closest advisers involving making tens of thousands of dollars off of state business.

The money would be split four ways, according to the plea. The alleged recipients: Blagojevich, the now-deceased Christopher Kelly, convicted businessman Tony Rezko and Monk.

Monk admitted to knowing about a variety of alleged schemes, but pleaded guilty to just one charge -- that he schemed with the ex-governor to shake down a racetrack businessman for a $100,000 campaign contribution in exchange for the governor's signature on a pending piece of legislation that would benefit horse racing in Illinois. Some of the conversations related to the scheme were caught on tape, according to the plea.

He was charged in just one count in a wide-reaching corruption case, but Rod Blagojevich's former chief of staff is expected to be a key government witness against his old boss -- and friend.
Lon Monk is slotted to plead guilty this morning in federal court, his lawyer said.
Monk's plea deal has been pending for months and was rescheduled at least twice.
Reached Monday, Monk's lawyer had no comment when asked if negotiations with the government were jammed up over the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to take up three cases that challenge the government's use of the honest services statute.
Monk's one charge is predicated on that statute. However, he's also mentioned elsewhere in the indictment.
Monk's cooperation is significant because he is a longtime, close friend of Blagojevich. The two were law school roommates and Monk was close to Blagojevich during both gubernatorial terms, either as a top aide or working for Blagojevich's campaign fund.
The Sun-Times first reported that the feds had tapped Monk's cell phone last year and secretly recorded numerous conversations.
That included a conversation between Monk and the ex-governor about an alleged shakedown of a horse-racing executive.
Even as a lobbyist, Monk was intensely involved in helping the ex-governor raise campaign cash up until the final months of 2008.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports today that the president of a topless bar was among those on a clout list who appeared to get people hired during Rod Blagojevich's administration.
Perry Mandera, of Glenview, was listed among clout-heavy political sponsors in a secret hiring database obtained by the Sun-Times.
Mandera's name was linked to 10 job candidates.
Four of the people on Mandera's list wound up getting state jobs, the records show.
Mandera, the president of a company that owns VIP's A Gentlemen's Club, a topless bar on the Near North Side, said he knew of no such list.
"I have no knowledge of what you're talking about," Mandera told a Sun-Times reporter. "This is the first time I'm hearing about this."

The Mandera report was the third report in a series about patronage under Blagojevich.
The first report indicated that Blagojevich ordered a hiring freeze while in state office, but, behind the scenes, "flouted the supposed freeze, forging a patronage machine that -- despite their boss' public promises -- eventually would provide state jobs or promotions to nearly 2,500 people with enough clout to have political sponsors."
On Sunday, the Sun-Times reported that the same lawmakers who forced the ex-governor's ouster, once begged him for jobs.

Will a federal judge let Rod Blagojevich appear on Donald Trump's "Celebrity Appearance?"
Lawyers for Rod Blagojevich will be in court today to argue that the former governor shouldn't be barred from Donald Trump's reality show.
Prosecutors are expected to challenge the former governor's appearance on the series, which is being filmed now but won't be aired until March.
U.S. District Judge James Zagel barred Blagojevich from appearing on the Costa Rican set of "I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here," earlier this year.
"I don't think this defendant in all honesty ... fully understands the position he finds himself in," Zagel said at the time.
Zagel held that authority because he would have had to grant the ex-governor special permission to travel outside the country. (Former First Lady of Illinois, Patti Blagojevich, went in her husband's stead.)
It's unclear what legal blockade could be used to bar Blagojevich. He's free to travel throughout the United States and his lawyers will likely argue he needs to work. He was ousted from his post as governor in January. He will be a paid contestant on the show, sources have told the Sun-Times.
Prosecutors will likely argue that the March airing could taint the potential jury pool for Blagojevich's June trial, sources said.

The former governor, who has been in New York for the taping, is not expected to be in Chicago's federal courthouse today.

Federal prosecutors on Monday are expected to raise concerns over Rod Blagojevich's slotted appearance on Donald Trump's reality show: "Celebrity Apprentice."
At issue is the March airing of the show, which is just months before jury seating is to begin in the former governor's criminal trial, sources said.
The corruption trial is set to begin in June.
Since his December arrest, Blagojevich has embarked on a media bonanza, including releasing a personal memoir and going on a coast-to-coast book tour. Blagojevich has appeared on the "Daily Show," David Letterman and Jimmy Kimmel, to name a few.
So why the concern now?
"Celebrity Apprentice" doesn't air until next spring, so prosecutors are likely complain there's a possibility of tainting the jury pool, sources said. Blagojevich will reportedly join Cyndi Lauper and Sharon Osbourne, among others.
The matter will be before U.S. District Judge James Zagel, who denied Blagojevich's bid to travel to Costa Rica earlier this year. Blagojevich wasn't allowed to travel out of the country. Zagel also encouraged Blagojevich to instead focus on his criminal trial.
Patti Blagojevich took her husband's spot on the show instead.
Blagojevich, who is being paid to be a contestant on Trump's NBC show, has been in New York this week to begin filming the reality series.
A U.S. Attorney spokesman had no comment.

By taking up the case of Enron executive Jeffrey Skilling, the U.S. Supreme Court signaled Tuesday it is on a clear path to tackle the amorphous "honest services" statute, something that could impact Rod Blagojevich's upcoming trial.

The lawyer for Rod Blagojevich's brother, Robert Blagojevich, told the Chicago Sun-Times he thinks the statute "is going to be shredded," possibly resulting in a trial delay or new charges against his client.

Robert and Rod Blagojevich were indicted together April 2.
Honest services makes up a good chunk of Blagojevich's indictment. The only two charges against Robert Blagojevich are rooted in alleged honest services fraud.
"Blagojevich has traveled across the country proclaiming his innocence," writes Chicago Tribune columnist Greg Burns today. "Maybe his next stop should be on the steps of the Supreme Court."

It's the third honest services case the high court has taken up (the others are that of media baron Conrad Black and an Alaskan state lawmaker). Lawyers see that as a sign that justices are out to better define a statute often criticized as vague. The law says one can be found to have deprived a company or taxpayers of his or her honest services even if there was no financial loss -- or personal gain. But just when that line is crossed is open to interpretation.

In today's New York Times, Adam Liptak reminds us it was a Chicago case that propelled justices to take another look at the statute.
The high court in February refused to take up the case of patronage chief Robert Sorich. Sorich and others were convicted of denying Illinois taxpayers their honest services by fostering City Hall's patronage system even though Sorich didn't make any money off the deal. The case drew a strong rebuke from Justice Antonin Scalia who wrote: "It is one thing to enact and enforce clear rules against certain types of corrupt behavior ... but quite another to mandate a freestanding, open-ended duty to provide honest services -- with the details to be worked out case-by-case."

U.S. Sen. Roland Burris is still on the hot seat. The Chicago Sun-Times reports a congressional panel was querying state lawmakers about Burris' testimony before a state House panel. The questioning of the senator appointed by Rod Blagojevich came about one month after the Chicago Democrat announced he wouldn't run for a full term in 2010.

For more background on Burris happenings, click here.

Listen to the secretly recorded phone call between Burris and Robert Blagojevich, the ex-governor's fund-raising chief.