President-elect Barack Obama tried to stay clear of the flap over Roland Burris' fight to be seated, calling it a "Senate matter."

"I think he's a fine public servant," Obama said. "If he gets seated, then I'm going to work with Roland Burris just like I work with all the other senators to make sure that the people of Illinois and people of the country are served."

Obama's comments came at the end of a press conference at his transition offices where he announced the appointment of Nancy Killefer as "chief performance officer," a new post with the charge of "streamlining processes and wringing out inefficiencies so that taxpayers and consumers get more for their money."

Obama pointed to a Congressional Budget Office report estimating that the deficit he'll inherit will reach $1.2 trillion, and acknowledged that his economic recovery plan would likely add to that figure. One of the roles Killefer will play is ensuring that the stimulus bill makes a "big change that lasts beyond the economic recovery plan, and saves taxpayers money over the long term."

Plans to address challenges like entitlement spending are being discussed with Congress now, he said, and will likely be spelled out when he unveils his budget in the coming weeks. Typically, the incoming president delivers a "Budget Address" in lieu of a "State of the Union" after taking office.

The violence in the Middle East was again a topic, as the president-elect was asked whether his reluctance to comment under the guise of "one president at a time" could be interpreted negatively as silence to the Arab world.

"I can't control how people interpret what I'm saying," he said. "The silence is not as a consequence of a lack of concern. In fact, it's not silence. I've explained very clearly exactly what institutional constraints I'm under when it comes to this issue."

Today's press conference was the first formal forum where Obama faced reporters since arriving in Washington, though he spoke briefly to pool reporters at events Monday and Tuesday. When ABC's Jake Tapper said, "Welcome to Washington," the president-elect responded somewhat saracastically, "It's great to be here."