It was a Terrible Injustice – Trump Pardons Jailed Former Illinois Governor  

US President Donald Trump has pardoned Rod Blagojevich, the former Illinois governor who was convicted of corruption and sentenced to 14 years in prison.

Trump had previously commuted Blagojevich’s sentence in 2020.

Blagojevich was removed from office in 2009 and convicted of trying to sell the Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama when he became president in 2008.

“It was sort of 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 as he signed the pardon in the Oval Office.

When asked about the possibility of appointing Blagojevich as US ambassador to Serbia, Trump replied, “No, but I would. He’s now cleaner than anybody in this room.”

Trump also noted that he had met Blagojevich while filming “The Apprentice” and thought he “seemed like a very nice person.” However, he acknowledged that he didn’t know Blagojevich well.

This pardon is not Trump’s first, as he has already issued pardons to over 1,500 people accused of involvement in the January 6, 2021, US Capitol attack, as well as two dozen anti-abortion protesters and Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the “Silk Road” online marketplace.