Jesse Jackson Jr has resigned from the US House of Representatives.

ILLINOIS Governor Rod Blagojevich met with a renowned Chicago criminal lawyer over the weekend as he weighed his legal options on how to fight a scandal that has left his career in tatters and disrupted president-elect Barack Obama’s White House transition.

President-elect Barack Obama said he hoped to fulfil “the simple hopes and common dreams of all Americans” as he announced his resignation from the US Senate today.

President-elect Barack Obama said he hoped to fulfil “the simple hopes and common dreams of all Americans” as he announced his resignation from the US Senate today.

The Rev Jesse Jackson has apologised for “regretfully crude” comments he made about White House contender Barack Obama’s speeches in black churches during what he thought was a private conversation.