Obama elaborates on denial of contact with Blagojevich on Senate seat

President-elect Barack Obama was in Chicago today elaborating and repeating key statements regarding the ongoing federal investigation of Illinois Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich's alleged attempt to sell his nomination to Obama's vacant U.S. Senate seat.

See the two-minute news video below.

Obama repeated on camera his spokesman's statement that he thought the governor could no longer "effectively serve" and should resign, and that the Illinois Legislature, of which Obama used to be a member, would assemble next week and, he felt, would reach the same conclusion.

Obama said he's absolutely certain he had no conversation or contact with the governor over filling the vacancy and that none of his staff participated in any kind of deal-making.

That, Obama says, would be a direct contradiction of everything his campaign is about. He also said that his staff is pulling together a list of all contacts between his transition team and the governor's office for release in a few days.

Asked if his campaign had been interviewed by federal investigators and who the Obama transition official mentioned in one of the FBI wiretaps is, Obama replied he had not been contacted by federal officials and would leave the investigation to Chicago's U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald. He did not answer the transition official question.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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