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The disclosure is at odds with Burris'
testimony in January when an Illinois House impeachment committee
specifically asked if he had ever spoken to Robert Blagojevich or
other aides to the now-deposed governor about the Senate seat
vacated by Barack Obama.
Burris issued a statement Saturday saying
he voluntarily gave the committee a Feb. 4 affidavit disclosing the
contact with Robert Blagojevich because "there were several facts
that I was not given the opportunity to make during my testimony to
the impeachment committee."
The
affidavit, released Saturday by Burris' office, said Robert
Blagojevich called him three times -- once in October and twice after
the November election -- to seek his fundraising assistance.
Burris, a Democrat like the governor, said
he told Blagojevich he would not raise money because it would look
like he was trying to win favor from the governor for his
appointment.
The governor appointed Burris, a former
state attorney general, to Obama's Senate seat on Dec. 30, three
weeks after federal agents arrested Blagojevich on a complaint
alleging he had tried to trade the appointment for campaign cash or
a high-paying job. The House impeached Blagojevich and the Senate
removed him from office on Jan. 29.
Senate Democrats in Washington initially
said they would not seat anyone appointed by Blagojevich, but
eventually relented. One condition of their acceptance was Burris'
testimony before the Illinois House committee.
Early contacts
Impeachment committee chairwoman Barbara Flynn Currie, a
Democrat, said she had received the affidavit but had not had time
to compare it to Burris' testimony.
The affidavit also discloses for the first
time that Burris told former Blagojevich advisers Doug Scofield and
John Wyma of his interest in the post at a fundraiser in June, and
later with Blagojevich chief of staff John Harris, who was arrested
with Blagojevich on Dec. 9.
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 Scofield,
Wyma and Harris were among the Blagojevich associates Burris was
asked about in his Jan. 8 testimony by state Rep. Jim Durkin, the
impeachment committee's ranking Republican.
In
response, Burris said he had spoken only to Lon Monk, a former
Blagojevich aide-turned-lobbyist, last summer about his willingness
to take the seat.
"This wasn't a couple of questions that I
can understand someone may forget; it goes way beyond that," Durkin
said Saturday. "To say that he wasn't given the opportunity to
explain himself is a load of B.S."
A spokeswoman for Burris said he would not
make himself available for interviews Saturday.
Robert Blagojevich's attorney, Michael
Ettinger, did not immediate respond to a message seeking comment
Saturday.
The former governor's public relations
representative, Glenn Selig, said he would see if the governor had
any comment.
[Associated Press]
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
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