Blagojevich: 'I'm blacker than Barack Obama'

Let's just dive straight into some of the excerpts from a long, colorful interview that ousted Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich gave to Esquire magazine. First, on the Democrats' alleged optimism about his future, circa 2004:

"David Axelrod called me the day after John Kerry lost to Bush — Wednesday — and he said, You need to think about running for president in 2008. A new face from the Midwest to challenge Hillary Clinton. He used to work for me. He had Obama in his stable already — he's a consultant, so he's just gathering potential talents. That's what these guys do — it's all about picking winners."

And then onto showing the writer Rahm Emanuel's house:

"That house with the flag, and then there's the lot right next door — he bought that. When he left the [Clinton] White House, he got into some deal where he made a quick $15 million through his connections with Exelon ComEd — amazing. Fifteen million — it's that white-collar stuff people do. He's using his connections in the White House, but I'm the guy facing what I'm facing. And I'm broke."

And finally on President Barack Obama, whose Senate seat Blago -- who has pleaded not guilty to corruption charges -- allegedly tried to sell:

"It's such a cynical business, and most of the people in the business are full of s**t and phonies, but I was real, man — and am real. This guy, he was catapulted in on hope and change, what we hope the guy is. What the f**k? Everything he's saying's on the teleprompter. I'm blacker than Barack Obama. I shined shoes. I grew up in a five-room apartment. My father had a little laundromat in a black community not far from where we lived. I saw it all growing up."