Washington, D.C. – Former U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday granted a full pardon to Rod Blagojevich, the former Illinois governor who was convicted of corruption and sentenced to 14 years in prison. The move comes five years after Trump commuted Blagojevich’s sentence during his first term.
Blagojevich, a Democrat, was removed from office in 2009 and later found guilty of attempting to sell the Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama following his 2008 presidential victory. Speaking in the Oval Office, Trump defended his decision, calling the conviction a “terrible injustice.”
“They just went after him. They go after a lot of people. These are bad people on the other side,” Trump told reporters. “I think he’s a very fine person, and this shouldn’t have happened.”
When asked about reports suggesting Blagojevich was being considered for an ambassadorship to Serbia, Trump dismissed the claim but added, “No, but I would. He’s now cleaner than anybody in this room.”
Back in 2020, Trump was vague about his reasoning for commuting Blagojevich’s sentence but noted that the former governor had appeared on Trump’s reality show, The Apprentice. At the time, he remarked, “He seemed like a very nice person,” while acknowledging that he didn’t know him well.
Blagojevich served eight years of his 14-year sentence, and Trump argued that many disagreed with the severity of his punishment.
Since returning to the White House on January 20, Trump has exercised his presidential pardon powers extensively. On the evening of his inauguration, he issued pardons for approximately 1,500 individuals linked to the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack. Additionally, he has granted clemency to over two dozen anti-abortion protesters and Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the illicit online marketplace Silk Road.
Trump’s latest pardon signals a continued use of his executive power to correct what he perceives as political and judicial overreach.
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