Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool said Thursday he is not going to work President-elect Barack Obama, and will not seek the seat in Congress being vacated by Rahm Emanuel.
Claypool has served as chief of staff for Mayor Richard M. Daley and has also worked with David Axelrod, Obama's chief political strategist.
“It was tempting and something I gave a lot of thought,” Claypool told the Chicago Sun-Times. “It would be an exciting time to be in Congress and support the president-elect’s agenda and work with people I know and have a long history with in a time of national crisis."
Speculation remains that he may run against Todd Stroger for the job as president of the Cook County Board. That will be determined next summer, NBC Chicago's Mary Ann Ahern reported.
