Obama, today:
Q Mr. President-elect, did you have any contact — were you aware of — were you aware at all of what was happening with your Senate seat?
PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: I — hold on, hold on, hold on a second, guys. I’ll just answer this one question.
I had no contact with the governor or his office, and so we were not — I was not aware of what was happening. And as I said, it’s a sad day for Illinois. Beyond that, I don’t think it’s appropriate to comment. Okay?
Obama’s chief strategist, David Axelrod, back on November 23: “I know he’s talked to the governor and there are a whole range of names many of which have surfaced, and I think he has a fondness for a lot of them.”
Team Obama says that Axelrod “misspoke” back in November. Hmmm.
If Obama and Blagojevich talked by phone, the FBI might have an audio recording of that.