Remember Rob Blagojevich?\u00a0\u00a0He was the two term Democratic Governor of the Great State of Illinois, known best for his \u201cmop-top, Davey Jones\u201d hair.\u00a0\u00a0Besides being the Chief Executive of the home of Lincoln, he joined in a great Illinois political tradition:\u00a0\u00a0he\u2019s in jail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some of his fellow Governors spent time for more \u201cexotic\u201d charges, like Dan Walker who in his post political career was convicted for bank fraud.\u00a0And, of course, Illinois political leaders going to jail is a bipartisan phenomenon. Former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert served time for bank regulations violations. It was really about paying hush money to an athlete he molested as a high school coach.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But Blagojevich\u2019s corruption was pretty much straight forward; he traded influence for money while in office.\u00a0\u00a0In fact, he tried to sell the US Senate seat vacated by newly elected President Barack Obama to the highest bidder.\u00a0\u00a0For that, he was impeached and removed by the Illinois legislature. So the former Governor went on a publicity tour.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From\u00a0Letterman<\/em> to the\u00a0Daily Show<\/em>, Blagojevich proclaimed his innocence.\u00a0\u00a0He also developed a \u201ccelebrity\u201d career, starting a two-hour weekly radio show.\u00a0And, he made a fateful appearance of the 9th<\/sup> season of\u00a0Celebrity Apprentice<\/em>, where he earned high praise from host Donald Trump.\u00a0\u00a0That was right before he was fired in the fourth episode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The US Attorney for Northern Illinois wasn\u2019t impressed by the notoriety, and charged the former Governor with 24 Federal charges of corruption.\u00a0It took two trials, the first ending in a mistrial, to convict him on 17 charges.\u00a0\u00a0Blagojevich was sentenced to 14 years in Federal prison.\u00a0\u00a0He is now held in a minimum-security facility in Englewood, Colorado, just outside of Denver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This week President Donald Trump \u201ctweeted\u201d that he is considering commuting the former Governor\u2019s sentence.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s been seven years in jail, and Trump\u2019s famous \u201cmany people\u201d asked him to look into ending his prison term.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump told reporters that Blagojevich was imprisoned \u201c…over a phone call were nothing happens,\u201d and that he \u201c\u2026shouldn\u2019t have said what he said, but it was braggadocio.\u201d The Governor was recorded on a wiretap asking for money in exchange for appointment to the Senate seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But it makes sense that Trump would relate to Blagojevich\u2019s fate.\u00a0Both Trump and \u201cBlago\u201d are \u201cmedia\u201d politicians, using their personal charms to speak directly to voters.\u00a0\u00a0They also both have penchant for strong language, with \u201cBlago\u201d stating about the Senate vacancy: \u201cI\u2019ve got this thing, and it\u2019s f**king golden.\u00a0\u00a0And I\u2019m just not giving it up for f**king nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The President knows what it\u2019s like to hear his own voice on secret recordings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And, of course, they both are known for their hair.\u00a0\u00a0But what cuts closest to the bone for the President, is that \u201cBlago\u201d tried to use his office to financially enhance himself.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s something the President can directly relate to. He continue to receive profits from the various Trump properties benefitting from his Presidency. Who knows if that might be considered corrupt by some future Administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps Mr. Trump is trying to establish some kind of precedent.\u00a0\u00a0Corruption is office isn\u2019t such a big deal, as the President said:\u00a0\u00a0\u201cbeing stupid, saying things that every other politician, you know, that many other politicians say.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The President also took the opportunity to criticize the FBI and Justice Department officials who prosecuted Blagojevich, saying \u201c\u2026And it was the same gang \u2014 the (James Comey) gang and the \u2014 all these sleazebags \u2014 that did it.\u201d That actually isn\u2019t quite true; Comey was in private practice and wasn\u2019t with the FBI or Justice Department at the time of the prosecution. But we get why the President might be sensitive to investigations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And finally, Trump clearly admires something that Blagojevich has. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m very impressed with his wife,\u201d he said. \u201cShe\u2019s one hell of a woman.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\nAsk the President<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s About the FBI<\/h3>\n\n\n\n