WASHINGTON -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid defended his right to block the Senate appointment of former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris, but he didn't close the door entirely to Mr. Burris eventually getting the job.

The Nevada Democrat has asserted that the 71-year-old Illinois political veteran is tainted because he was chosen by Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who is accused by federal authorities of trying to sell the seat to the highest bidder.

Mr. Blagojevich, a Democrat, has denied wrongdoing, and Mr. Burris is not implicated in the case. But many prominent Democrats, including President-elect Barack Obama, whose election created the vacancy at the center of the controversy, contend that Mr. Blagojevich has forfeited his right to name a successor.

"The state of Illinois deserves a vote in the United States Senate, and the people of the state of Illinois, the fifth-most populous state in the union, deserve that vote," Mr. Reid said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

He added: "I'm an old trial lawyer. Anything can happen."

But as long as Mr. Blagojevich remains in power, Mr. Burris' chances appear virtually nil. "It's going to be very difficult for that to occur," Mr. Reid said.

The Illinois case has become an embarrassment for Democrats. The party is fresh from an electoral victory that has expanded its congressional majority and placed major legislative achievements within reach. But even as the new Congress convenes today, those goals will have to compete with the Blagojevich-Burris drama.

The second-ranking Senate Democrat, Dick Durbin, D-Ill., allowed that Mr. Blagojevich retains the authority to fill the vacancy. But he said the Senate is within its rights as well.

"The Senate of the United States has the U.S. constitutional responsibility to decide if Mr. Burris was chosen in a proper manner, and that is what we're going to do," Mr. Durbin said on ABC's "This Week."

Mr. Reid said he is to meet Wednesday with Mr. Burris, who is expected to arrive today in Washington. Mr. Reid also said he would discuss the matter with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

The situation has sparked a partisan battle, with Republicans asserting that a special election is the only valid solution, while Democrats said they would consider an appointment by Mr. Blagojevich's Democratic successor to be legitimate. Impeachment proceedings are under way against the governor in the Illinois Legislature, but even though action could be days away, the outcome remains uncertain.

"The process is so tainted, it is such a tangled mess, as you can see, that the only way to clear the air and to have a successor chosen in Illinois that everybody can have confidence in, and a process that they can have confidence in, would be to have a special election," Mr. McConnell said in an appearance on "This Week."

Mr. Burris says his appointment is legitimate and has threatened to sue if it is not recognized. Some African-American leaders have rallied to his side, suggesting overtones of racism if he is blocked from taking office.

Mr. Reid cast Mr. Burris as the victim of a desperate man.

"Blagojevich obviously is a corrupt individual. I think that's pretty clear. And the reason that he's done what he's done is to divert attention from the arrest that was just made of him and the indictment which will be coming in a few days, according to the U.S. attorney in Illinois," Mr. Reid said.