Obama Throws Axelrod Under the Bus in Record Time

Been following BlagoGate on the periphery today and if you've been under a rock, start here.

Anyway, the latest I've been keeping tabs on is the claim made by Obama today whether he'd discussed his Senate seat with his disgraced pal.

Asked what contact he'd had with the governor's office about his replacement in the Senate, President-elect Obama today said "I had no contact with the governor or his office and so we were not, I was not aware of what was happening."

But on November 23, 2008, his senior adviser David Axelrod appeared on Fox News Chicago and said something quite different.

While insisting that the President-elect had not expressed a favorite to replace him, and his inclination was to avoid being a "kingmaker," Axelrod said, "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."

Via here.

Watch for yourself.



Uhhh, but now, you're not supposed to believe what you just saw.

An Obama aide, speaking on the condition of anonymity, took back David Axelrod's remark last month that Barack Obama and Rod Blagojevich had spoken recently.

"What the president-elect said today is correct, David Axelrod misspoke," the aide said.

Obama said today the men had not spoken.

That was quick. Axelrod is officially the 389th acquaintance of our Dear Leader-elect to get tossed under the bus. He's got plenty of company.

Naturally, any Obama connection to his good friend Rod Blagojevich (D-Leavenworth) will be magically purged from existence. Stalinesque, so to speak.

Just remember how close they are.

Obama Advised Blagojevich On His Victorious Gubernatorial Run. “That year, [Obama] gained his first high-level experience in a statewide campaign when he advised the victorious gubernatorial candidate Rod Blagojevich, another politician with a funny name and a message of reform.” (Ryan Lizza, “Making It,” The New Yorker, 7/21/08)

Obama: “If the governor asks me to work on his behalf, I’ll be happy to do it.” (John Patterson, “Senator Says He’s Still Willing To Help Blagojevich Despite Hiring Concerns,” Chicago Daily Herald, 7/27/06)

Obama Endorsed Blagojevich For A Second Term. “Obama, who endorsed Blagojevich for a second term nearly 18 months ago, said he’s ready to help Illinois democrats in the upcoming elections.” (John Patterson, “Senator Says He’s Still Willing To Help Blagojevich Despite Hiring Concerns,” Chicago Daily Herald, 7/27/06)

Obama: “We’ve got a governor in Rod Blagojevich who has delivered consistently on behalf of the people of Illinois.” (Deanna Bellandi, “Illinois Democrats Talk Unity But Don’t Show It,” The Associated Press, 8/16/06)

I'll leave you with this funny riff from an Illinois Democrat.

So, after 30 years of Republican rule, Democrat Blagojevich slid into the office, where he immediately made clear the disdain for the actual business of state government which would mark his tenure as governor by rarely visiting the state capital in Springfield, and never even pretending to set up housekeeping in the Governor's official residence.

Understand that, in Illinois, Democrats now control the state House, state Senate, every state-wide constitutional office, the Mayoralty of Chicago, the city council of Chicago, the board controlling the second most populous county in the country (Cook), and almost the entire federal congressional delegation at a time when the DNC has been moved to Chicago, and an Illinois Senator is about to be sworn in as President.

So you'd think, hey, maybe now would not be the very best time to piss away a once-in-a-lifetime historic opportunity to consolidate Democratic gains by fucking up the state budget and generally carrying on like poo-flinging howler monkeys.

But you would be wrong.

Update: Man, this is pathetic.

Axelrod issued a brief written statement on Tuesday saying he had been wrong.

"I was mistaken when I told an interviewer last month that the president-elect has spoken directly to Governor Blagojevich about the Senate vacancy. They did not then or at any time discuss the subject," Axelrod said.

So, were you lying then or are you lying now?

Might be time for a chat with the U.S. Attorney to verify that one, Dave.

Meanwhile, something called the Better Government Association says none of this has anything to do with Obama, so back off if you know what's good for you.

Jay Stewart, director of the Better Government Association, a Chicago watchdog group, agreed: "This is all about Rod, it's not about the president-elect," he said.

Yes, but when a Republican is in trouble, it's about all Republicans. This is strictly about Blagojevich and him alone. Let's not take this any further. The One cannot be implicated in anything!

Thanks to Gateway Pundit for the link.