But Driskell remains fiercely loyal to her vice president, just as she was during the impeachment crisis.

When, at the council's April 9 meeting, Burton made a joke about recruiting liberal students to run in special elections to balance a new member who is part of the Republican Club, a handful of more conservative council members shouted taunts from their seats.

Driskell wouldn't stand for it.

"If you take issue with [Burton's] remarks, take it up with him!" she scolded the council. "You can turn this into an animal house if you want, but I don't think so."

This reputation as something of a "joker," Darling says, may have made Burton's transition to a position of authority on the council more difficult.

But Burton, in his characteristic tongue-in-cheek style, says he thinks other factors may have impeded his move to establish the respect of the council.

"The transition into the vice presidency probably would have been easier if some people had not tried to impeach me," Burton writes in an e-mail message.

The Burton Agenda