Rod Blagojevich‘s former chief of staff, John Harris, continued his testimony on Monday by saying that even though “Emil Jones’ relationship has been one of political godfather to Barack Obama,” the President-elect had made it clear through his aides Rahm Emanuel and David Axelrod that he preferred Valerie Jarrett be appointed to the U.S. Senate.
“Do they think I would just appoint Valerie Jarrett for nothing, just to make him happy?” Blagojevich said in a taped phone call with Harris played during the former governor’s corruption trial.
Prosecutor Carrie Hamilton played another phone call between Harris and Blagojevich in which they discussed their bargaining position with the Obama administration and how Blagojevich’s power to appoint Illinois’ next senator could influence that.
In one of the calls, Blagojevich expressed his interest in being appointed the secretary of health and human services in the Obama administration.
“What other cabinet position would be not stupid?” he asked Harris, before submitting the idea of U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.
Harris said he and Blagojevich also discussed plans to leak false rumors that Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan was being considered for the Senate seat so that it would get back to the Obama camp, though they were never seriously considering her.