March 15, 2012, is a day many in Illinois won’t ever forget, especially the Blagojevich family, as the former governor said goodbye to his wife and two young daughters and departed his Chicago home in the pre-dawn hours, en route to the airport to catch a plane to Colorado, to begin serving a 14-year prison sentence.
In 2011, Blagojevich was convicted of fundraising violations, a routine practice in politics. Unlike former Gov. Bob McDonnell, R-Va., or Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., who served zero prison time, Blagojevich never took a bribe, flew on fancy jets, or accepted lavish gifts in exchange for his political influence. While Menendez recently returned to the Senate fresh off a re-election victory, Blagojevich sits in prison on a 14-year sentence as a nonviolent, first-time offender.
“It’s outrageous that Blagojevich goes to jail for 14 years when killers and sex offenders are out walking the streets,” tweeted then-private citizen Donald Trump the day Blagojevich reported to prison. “Is this justice…I don’t think so.”
Blagojevich first met Trump in 2010 when he appeared on Season 9 of The Celebrity Apprentice. Before firing Blagojevich in episode 4, Trump had a compliment. “Governor, I have great respect for you. I have great respect for your tenacity — for the fact that you just don’t give up.”
In June 2015, shortly after announcing his candidacy for the presidency, Trump stopped by the Chicago Tribune for an on-the-record interview with the editorial board. During the meeting, he was asked about Blagojevich. “I think that’s an awfully tough sentence that he got for what he supposedly did,” said presidential candidate Trump. “Because what he did is what politicians do all the time and make deals.”
On May 31, 2018, Trump brought up Blagojevich again — this time as president.
“Eighteen years I think is really unfair,” Trump said, “because what he did does not justify 18 years in jail … plenty of other politicians have said a lot worse. And it doesn’t, he shouldn’t have been put in jail.”
Since then, Republicans and Democrats alike have begun calling for Blagojevich’s release from prison. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the number two Democrat in Senate leadership, said a few days after Trump’s remark, “I think the sentence imposed on Rod Blagojevich was definitely way too long. Fourteen years, it didn’t make sense. I’ll let President Trump make that decision, but I certainly think fourteen years was entirely too long.”
Eric Holder, who was Attorney General from 2009-2015, has finally come around and now agrees with Trump that the sentence imposed on Blagojevich was severe. In June, Holder said, “I thought that sentence was a little harsh.”
In Chicago’s African-American community, where Blagojevich remains a popular figure, community leaders, church leaders, and local activists have all come forward expressing their support of the president releasing the former governor from prison.
Seven years in prison for Blagojevich is seven years too long. He deserves to be back home with his family. Thanks to Trump, hope is still alive.
Mark Vargas (@MarkAVargas) is a tech entrepreneur, political adviser and contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog.
