President Trump is likely to commute the sentence of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich in part because of his disgust with the “Comey gang” who prosecuted the Illinois Democrat.
According to pool reports, Mr. Trump told reporters on Air Force One that “I thought he was treated unbelievably unfairly.
TRUMP confirms to pool on AF1 what two sources have said has been discussed for days - that he’s likely to commute Rod Blagojevich’s sentence.
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) August 8, 2019
“He was given close to 18 years in prison. 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 sleazebags that did it. And his name is Rod Blagojevich,” Mr. Trump said.
Maggie Haberman of The New York Times tweeted, citing “administration officials” that Blagojevich “has been pushed for a pardon by Trump’s son-in-law, Kushner. Aides got Trump to agree to a commutation instead.”
Blagojevich was convicted in 2010 and 2011 of 18 counts associated with his efforts to sell the U.S. Senate seat that Barack Obama would be vacating upon his inauguration as president.
The former Illinois governor appeared on Season 9 of The Celebrity Apprentice in 2010, a period between his indictment and his trials, saying he had the “skill and know-how to get things accomplished.” Mr. Trump fired him in the fourth episode.
• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.
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