I don't know about that. Bush would also deny he's talking to Hamas, even though he probably is, through indirect channels. There seems to be a sort of convention that it's more acceptable to lie about who your spooks are talking to than about who your diplomats are talking to. I think it's more likely than not that Obama will authorize intelligence contacts. But it doesn't make much difference.
To avoid confusion, let me illustrate how this might work. Right now the CIA has a station in Lebanon. As it happens, Hamas also has an important political office in Lebanon, headed by an Osama Hamdan, an official with a lot of clout. Let's say every week, the CIA station chief has lunch with some Lebanese politician/businessman/diplomat. One day over lunch, he says: "We'd like to know more about what Hamas is thinking. Why don't you start meeting with Hamdan, tell him you have American friends who are interested to know Hamas's thinking, and report back to me next week over lunch." So each week, the Lebanese comes back to the restaurant, reports what Hamdan told him, and the CIA man writes it up in a cable to headquarters. ("Hamdan says Hamas is willing to do XYZ, wants to know if we'd be willing to do XYZ, etc.")
Back in Washington, the cable eventually lands on Elliot Abrams' desk at the NSC, whereupon it promptly finds its way to the trash. This is repeated weekly. It doesn't make any difference. Now, under Obama, what maybe changes (I said maybe) is that the meetings are upgraded. Instead of of the Lebanese meeting with Hamdan, the station chief himself does it. Each week he writes his cable back to headquarters explaining what Hamas is thinking. And just like before, the cables arrive at the NSC Mideast desk (now manned by Dan Shapiro, the guy to the right of AIPAC), where they are again promptly thrown in the trash.
Only now when the Europeans complain that the US refusal to talk to Hamas is blocking any progress, the Obamites can say: But we are talking to Hamas! Just wait and see, maybe something will come of it! Hopefully the Obama magic doesn't wear off for a while so that this buys some time and satisfies the right people that America is showing a "newfound pragmatism" under its "fresh young leader."
SA