Tag: Rod Blagojevich

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Anderson Cooper Calls BS On Blagojevich’s ‘Political Prisoner’ Claim

This is seriously must-see TV. CNN’s Anderson Cooper spars with former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who calls himself a “political prisoner” days after being pardoned by President Trump. Normally, I try and condense the news here on The Randy Report, so I don’t post 11-minute videos very often. But this is quite something. Blagojevich’s sentence was commuted earlier this week by Trump after the Democrat (and former “Celebrity Apprentice” contestant) had served eight years of a 14-year sentence for pay-for-play crimes. You may recall the former governor was caught on tape admitting he planned to ‘sell’ President-elect Barack Obama’s U.S. Senate seat to the highest bidder. At one point in last night’s interview, Blagojevich states he wants to work on reforming the criminal justice system. Cooper found that to be laughable. “It’s a little ironic, and frankly a little sad and pathetic and hypocritical, you talking about getting a commutation of a sentence, which is within the president’s right, but you ignored a whole hell of a lot of other people who were hoping you might give them clemency when you actually mattered,” said Cooper. At the end of the fiery interview, here’s Cooper’s summation:

“Look, I have no problem with you getting out. The president can commute whoever he wants. I just think you’re besmirching prosecutors who actually are no longer in government.

“But prosecutors are important in our system and you are going after the very basis of our justice system. Part of the thing is you got out – you do have an obligation to at least admit what you did wrong and you refuse to do that and you’re creating a whole new alternate universe of facts. “And that may be big in politics today, but it’s still frankly just bullshit.”

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Trump Considering Commuting Convicted Gov’s Sentence Because “Many” Politicians Have Sold Senate Seats

Donald Trump

Donald Trump told reporters during a flight on Air Force One he is considering giving former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich either a pardon or commutation of a 14-year prison sentence.

Blagojevich, a former “Apprentice” contestant (he didn’t win), was convicted of trying to sell Barack Obama’s Senate seat when he became president.

From the New York Times:

In remarks aboard Air Force One, Mr. Trump described the incriminating phone call in which Mr. Blagojevich, a Democrat, was taped discussing selling the seat as mostly a minor offense and something “many” politicians have done.

The move is likely to face steep blowback, since Mr. Blagojevich’s crime has long been seen as the epitome of the kind of pay-to-play that Mr. Trump has claimed he wanted to stop when he took office.

“I thought he was treated unbelievably unfairly; he was given close to 18 years in prison,” Mr. Trump said. “And a lot of people thought it was unfair, like a lot of other things — and it was the same gang, the Comey gang and all these sleaze bags that did it. And his name is Rod Blagojevich. And I’m thinking about commuting his sentence.”

Speaking on the plane on Wednesday, the president noted: “He’s been in jail for seven years over a phone call where nothing happens — over a phone call which he shouldn’t have said what he said, but it was braggadocio you would say. I would think that there have been many politicians — I’m not one of them by the way — that have said a lot worse over the telephone.”

The FBI recorded Blagojevich during a telephone call discussing plans to sell the Senate seat. “I’ve got this thing, and it’s f*cking golden,” Blagojevich said during the recorded conversation. “I’m not just giving it up for nothing.”

The Times reports that Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is supportive of the commutation and apparently thinks it will be ‘popular’ with Democrats.

It’s important to note that Blagojevich’s case was handled by former FBI Director James Comey and Robert Mueller. With that in mind, it’s easy to see this as a big f*ck you to the two men Trump despises.