Burris Laments Lack of African-American Senators in Farewell

Roland Burris, in a 25-minute goodbye speech on the Senate floor, today lamented that there would be no African-American senators in the chamber once his term ends at the end of the month.

Burris said his position as the only black Senator "in a country as progressive and diverse as any on the planet," also was a "solemn reminder of how far we still yet have to go." He then listed his five predecessors, including Carol Moseley Braun and Barack Obama and noted "this is troubling in its own right."