Feds reveal more recordings of Blagojevich

CHICAGO, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- Federal investigators have more secretly taped conversations of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich than previously disclosed, court documents indicate.

The revelation of more recordings came as federal prosecutors plan to seek the release of portions of those recordings to an Illinois House of Representatives committee investigating whether Blagojevich should be impeached, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Tuesday.

Prosecutors were scheduled to appear Tuesday before Chief U.S. District Judge James Holderman to ask for the release of portions of four recordings concerning the governor's alleged discussion of asking for campaign contributions in exchange for official actions.

Blagojevich was arrested Dec. 9 on a federal criminal complaint alleging he sought personal benefit from his gubernatorial decisions. Among the accusations was one that Blagojevich tried to peddle President-elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat.

The governor has denied any wrongdoing.

One of the newly revealed recordings involved a cell phone "Lobbyist 1," which the Sun-Times said it identified as Lon Monk, the governor's first-term chief of staff. Monk later became a fundraiser and state lobbyist.

Meanwhile, Blagojevich's criminal attorney Edward Genson spent nearly three hours before the legislative panel Monday, saying he was battling "shadows" in his defense of the governor, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Genson said the hearing was unfair because he was denied the opportunity to call witnesses and the panel hadn't defined its standard for impeachment.

"We're fighting shadows here. We're fighting unnamed people," Genson said. "We're fighting witnesses who aren't available."

The panel's chairwoman, Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie, D-Chicago, said Genson was "throwing up whatever fairy dust he could" to delay lawmakers' decision on whether to recommend impeachment to the full House.