Adam Smith posts a quote from Obama during an interview he gave to the St. Pete Times/News 9 today in Florida:

"I was in union, Missouri which is 98 percent white - a rural, conservative. and what I said was what I think everybody knows, which is that I don't look like I came out of central casting when it comes to presidential candidates. But that I think that what people are really concerned about, what they're looking for is fundamental change on the economy, things that are going to help their families live out the American dream.

'There was nobody there who thought at all that I was trying to inject race in this. What this has become I think is a typical pattern from the McCain campaign, whether it's Paris Hilton or Britney or this phoney allegation that I wouldn't visit troops. They seem to be focused on a negative campaign what I think our campaign wants to do is focus on the issues that matter to American families."

The first paragraph is nearly verbatim what David Axelrod said this morning on the Today show, except for the one addition at the end:

Lauer: David, what does the comment mean if it's not a direct reference to race, what does it mean?

Axelrod: Matt, what it means, what he was saying - and he does this in a self mocking way - look, I know I'm not from central casting when it comes to presidents of the United States. I'm new, I'm relatively young, I haven't spent my life in Washington. And yes, I'm African-American - and that's going to be some fodder.