The members of the Senate, who had initially resisted the idea of having a colleague appointed by the impeached Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, gave Roland Burris a polite reception to the famously fussy chamber, maintaining that their opposition was never about Burris personally.

Officially now as the junior Senator from Illinois, Burris takes his Senate seat - the one vacated by Obama - beside fellow Democrats. After he was sworn-in by Vice President Dick Cheney on Thursday afternoon at a Capitol Hill ceremony - which was repeated for family and friends in the Old Senate Chamber - Burris became the only African American in the Senate.

After Burris had been administered the oath of office, his colleagues in the Senate chamber applauded and the members of the gallery cheered. Fellow Democrat Senators, friends, family, and reporters surrounded him, and congratulated him.

Burris was escorted to the front of the chamber by Sen. Richard J. Durbin, who was among those who earlier tried to block Burris from taking office. Praising Burris in a fairly long speech on the Senate floor, Durbin said: "Roland Burris is a good man and a dedicated public servant. I know this was a rocky road."

Though Burris has joined the Senate hierarchy, the fact remains that he has been forced on to the chamber, instead of being elected to it. For a clear win of the seat in two years, he faces an uphill task of winning over leaders of his party so as to raise campaign cash!