Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich’s team of lawyers filed papers with a Federal judge April 22, asking the court to issue a subpoena for President Obama to testify as a witness in the disgraced politician’s upcoming corruption trial.
According to the Associated Press (AP), the motion indicates that the president has direct knowledge concerning the government’s accusation that Blagojevich attempted to sell the senatorial seat left vacant following Obama’s presidential election victory.
While no direct accusations were brought against the president, the court documents claim that the comments made by Obama at a news conference conflict with statements made by a candidate for the seat and a labor union president.
"There are two conflicting stories and the defense has the right to admit evidence that contradicts the government’s claims," said the motion, which was obtained by news sources after blacked out portions of the documents were mistakenly revealed online for several hours.
Before the "computer glitch" could be fixed, the public was able to view sealed testimony by several witnesses who reportedly said that a labor union representative spoke with Obama on Nov. 3, 2008, and that the then-Illinois senator expressed his hope that Senate Candidate B would be picked by Blagojevich as his replacement. Valerie Jarrett, a longtime friend of Obama’s and a current White House adviser, is known to be Senate Candidate B, according to Fox News.
Blagojevich’s trial is expected to begin on June 3. It is still unclear whether Obama will be forced to testify. 