Quote:President Trump has commuted the sentence of the ex-governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich, who has been imprisoned since being convicted in 2010 on corruption charges over his attempt to sell the Senate seat vacated by then-President Obama.
"Yes, we commuted the sentence of Rod Blagojevich," Trump told reporters on Tuesday.
The move would free Blagojevich from prison four years before he would have been eligible for parole and clear his corruption convictions.
Blagojevich, once seen as a rising star in the Democratic party, was a contestant on Trump's former reality show "The Celebrity Apprentice."
For years, his family and allies have been attempting to curry favor with the White House, with his wife, Patti, making repeated pleas on Fox News and other national outlets for Trump to intervene in her husband's case after exhausting all legal appeals.
Trump has made sympathetic comments about Blagojevich, having said publicly multiple times that Blagojevich's sentence was unfair.
Blagojevich, Trump said in 2018, was convicted for "being stupid, saying things that every other politician, you know, that many other politicians say."
Among the evidence federal prosecutors gathered on Blagojevich was his now-famous profanity on a phone call secretly recorded by the FBI about his attempt to profit from Obama's vacated Illinois Senate seat.
Blagojevich, 63, has been serving a 12-year prison sentence since 2012, and he would be eligible for release in 2024.
In 2010, after Blagojevich was removed as governor of Illinois over the corruption scandal, he appeared on "Apprentice," where Trump fired Blagojevich before saying "I feel badly for him. He tried, but I feel badly."
A jury convicted Blagojevich in 2010 of one count of lying to FBI agents, not reaching a consensus on another 23 other charges. But then in 2011, another jury convicted him of 17 counts, including 10 of wire fraud, and one count of soliciting bribes.
A judge sentenced him to 14 years in federal prison.
Quote:The White House announced Tuesday that President Trump is granting a full pardon to former San Francisco 49ers owner Edward DeBartolo Jr., who was convicted of failing to report a bribe to the former governor of Louisiana when he pleaded guilty in 1998.
NFL greats including Jerry Rice, Ronnie Lott, Charles Haley, and Jim Brown were on hand at the White House, expressing their support for DeBartolo, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016.
"I take my hat off to Donald Trump for what he did," Rice said, crediting DeBartolo for his former team's success in the 1980s and 90s.
“He wanted us to win and I think he’s the main reason why we won so many Super Bowls," said Rice, who played on three of DeBartolo's Super Bowl-winning teams.
“I’m going to make it real simple," Brown said. "Ed DeBartolo is a great man.”
Brown spoke of his personal relationship with DeBartolo, calling him "a great, great friend of mine and to the league."
Your anger and ego will always reveal your true self.
(02-18-2020, 04:37 PM)fredtoast Wrote: Both cases involved an elected official receiving illegal financial gain in exchange for their political influence.
Think he is sending a message?
That would involve him ever thinking beyond today.
Probably more they buttered him up and gave some cash.
Your anger and ego will always reveal your true self.
I'm ok with Edward DeBartolo Jr. From what I could find, the governor demanded $400k from him for a casino license so he agreed to pay. He was given 2 years of probation after he took a plea for failing to report the felony that the governor committed.
Of course, this is what privilege looks like. There's plenty of people with more damaging records for doing far less.
In principal I have nothing against the pardons/commutations as I really dont support jail time for nonviolent offenses and would rather see these crimes punished with fines proportional to the people's worth as well as being barred from public office in the future.
Now could we trust our justice system to apply that equitably? Doubtful. Like Pat said, this is privilege at work.
I'm impressed Blagojevich was sentenced to 12 years before being eligible for parole. 8 is still a really long time to ultimately do. No strong opinion either way on if he should have been forced to serve all 12, but just wanted to voice my surprise.
(02-18-2020, 04:39 PM)GMDino Wrote: That would involve him ever thinking beyond today.
Probably more they buttered him up and gave some cash.
NEW — The son of one of Trump’s pardon recipients gave $85k to Trump victory this August. His wife gave $50k that same month. On top of that, they made an in-kind contribution for $75k in air travel. https://t.co/M585LiH6Bu
I thought Obama was blagojevich’s boy? Are we off that fox induced conspiracy track now? Almost seems like these tea party extremists forgot their prior gripes when burdened by some medical bills. Low T dickbagoveich’s.
(02-19-2020, 01:15 AM)Vas Deferens Wrote: I thought Obama was blagojevich’s boy? Are we off that fox induced conspiracy track now? Almost seems like these tea party extremists forgot their prior gripes when burdened by some medical bills. Low T dickbagoveich’s.
Quote:The prosecutors who helped convicted Blagojevich issued a stern statement in response to the commutation, noting that while the president has to the right to commute his sentence, the former governor committed serious crimes. The prosecuting team reminded the public that the former governor extorted the CEO of a children's hospital, withholding funds for sick children until he issued campaign contributions.
"The law and extensive facts underlying Mr. Blagojevich's conviction were reviewed by independent judges on an appellate court and by the Supreme Court of the United States," said Reid J. Schar, Chris Niewoehner, Judge Carrie E. Hamilton and Patrick J. Fitzgerald in a statement. "These courts affirmed Mr. Blagojevich's conviction and sentence, and the appellate court described the evidence against him as 'overwhelming.'"
"Extortion by a public official is a very serious crime, routinely prosecuted throughout the United States whenever, as here, it can be detected and proven," they continued. "That has to be the case in America: a justice system must hold public officials accountable for corruption. It would be unfair to their victims and the public to do otherwise. While the president has the power to reduce Mr. Blagojevich's sentence, the fact remains that the former governor was convicted of very serious crimes. His prosecution serves as proof that elected officials who betray those they are elected to serve will be held to account."
House Republicans from Illinois issued a joint statement expressing disappointment with the commutation, calling Blavojevich the "face of public corruption."
"We are disappointed by the president's commutation of Rod Blagojevich's federal sentence," they said in a joint statement. "We believe he received an appropriate and fair sentence, which was the low-end of the federal sentencing guidelines for the gravity of his public corruption convictions. Blagojevich is the face of public corruption in Illinois, and not once has he shown any remorse for his clear and documented record of egregious crimes that undermined the trust placed in him by voters. As our state continues to grapple with political corruption, we shouldn't let those who breached the public trust off the hook. History will not judge Rod Blagojevich well."
Your anger and ego will always reveal your true self.
I much prefer commutations over pardons unless you believe the person is actually innocent, or if we are moving away from crimes such as weed.
“History teaches that grave threats to liberty often come in times of urgency, when constitutional rights seem too extravagant to endure.”-Thurgood Marshall
So, since the day Trump has been acquitted, he has:
1. Fired both Vindman brothers, presumably because Alexander Vindman testified against him.
2. Fired Gordon Sondland, presumably because he testified against him.
3. Interfered with the sentencing of Roger Stone.
4. Has insisted that he learned no lesson from his impeachment and that there was nothing wrong with his call (defying the expectations of several Republican Senators who were convinced that he learned a lesson on what kind of behavior will get you impeached).
5. Admitted that he did indeed send Giuliani to Ukraine to dig up dirt on Biden (not a new revelation that he did it, but the first time he's actually admitted to the blatantly obvious).
6. Casually accused Mueller of lying to Congress (A federal crime).
7. Said that he had the "legal right" to interfere with any legal case he likes.
8. Appears to be working with Barr to re-evaluate/review/scrutinize several cases of his former employees who have been convicted of crimes while openly opining about pardoning Stone and Flynn if their cases hold up.
9. Pardoned several people who just so happened to be convicted of some form of corruption.
We have an outright authoritarian on our hands, guys.
(02-20-2020, 11:07 AM)Crazyjdawg Wrote: So, since the day Trump has been acquitted, he has:
1. Fired both Vindman brothers, presumably because Alexander Vindman testified against him.
2. Fired Gordon Sondland, presumably because he testified against him.
3. Interfered with the sentencing of Roger Stone.
4. Has insisted that he learned no lesson from his impeachment and that there was nothing wrong with his call (defying the expectations of several Republican Senators who were convinced that he learned a lesson on what kind of behavior will get you impeached).
5. Admitted that he did indeed send Giuliani to Ukraine to dig up dirt on Biden (not a new revelation that he did it, but the first time he's actually admitted to the blatantly obvious).
6. Casually accused Mueller of lying to Congress (A federal crime).
7. Said that he had the "legal right" to interfere with any legal case he likes.
8. Appears to be working with Barr to re-evaluate/review/scrutinize several cases of his former employees who have been convicted of crimes while openly opining about pardoning Stone and Flynn if their cases hold up.
9. Pardoned several people who just so happened to be convicted of some form of corruption.
We have an outright authoritarian on our hands, guys.
10) 40-45% of registered voters think that is all a-ok because Republican.
We have low voter education, loads of misinformation, and a "man" who lies with such impunity that he nevers gets held accountable by a large group that he lies to just get them to vote for him.
He is nothing more than an internet troll with a 4th grade education/vocabulary who repeats what works.
He is Lois Griffin running for office.
Minus the good intention and the sane people laugh at him too.
Your anger and ego will always reveal your true self.
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