Hastert wants a hand in Chicago's Olympic bid

Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert said Sunday that he would like to help Chicago win its bid for the 2016 Olympics.

The Illinois Republican announced in August he wouldn't seek another term in Congress and officially resigned Nov. 26.

He said Sunday that an Olympic event in Chicago would be "outstanding" for the Midwest.

"The Olympics have never been in the Midwest, never been in the heartland of this country before," Hastert said in an interview broadcast Sunday on WBBM, 780-AM. "If I can be of help and of service, I really want to be able to do that."

Hastert said he can offer international contacts and experience as an honorary chairman of the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. The former Republican congressman from Illinois said he hadn't officially discussed his involvement in the Olympic bid with Chicago Mayor Richard Daley or Patrick Ryan, leader of the Chicago 2016 organizing committee.

"I've always felt very strongly that we need to do good things that impact Chicago not because it's just Chicago," Hastert said. "It impacts northern Illinois. It impacts the Midwest."