By AP/St. Louis Public Radio
Chicago – Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich is apologizing for what he calls a poor choice of words in an Esquire magazine interview in which he claims he's "blacker than Barack Obama."
Blagojevich said he's sorry if he offended anyone, and he told WLS Radio in Chicago Monday that it was a "stupid thing to say."
In the Esquire interview, Blagojevich said he grew up in a small apartment, shined shoes as a boy and that his father ran a laundry in a black neighborhood.
The interview is in the February issue of Esquire, which hits newsstands Jan. 19.
The White House refused to comment on Blagojevich's statements in the interview.