President Donald Trump granted a full pardon to former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich at the White House on Monday.
‘It’s my honor to do it. I’ve watched him. He was set up by a lot of bad people,’ Trump told reporters in the Oval Office Monday evening after confirming that he had signed Blagojevich’s pardon documents.
Trump previously commuted the sentence of the Democrat in February 2020, as the Republican president was running for reelection.
At the time, Blagojevich had served eight years of a 14 year sentence on pay-to-play charges, as the governor was accused of trying to sell President Barack Obama’s Illinois Senate seat after Obama won the 2008 presidential election.
‘He served eight years in jail, a long time. He seems like a very nice person, don’t know him,’ Trump told reporters at the time.
The two had interacted during a filming of season 3 of Celebrity Apprentice in 2010, in which Blagojevich was briefly a contestant.
In recent days, Blagojevich has been rumored to be Trump’s pick to serve as ambassador to Serbia.
‘No, but I would,’ Trump answered when asked if he was considering Blagojevich for the role.
Former Democratic Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (left) received a full pardon from President Donald Trump (right) as it’s rumored he’s Trump’s choice to become ambassador to Serbia
Axios was first to report Monday on Trump’s plans to issue a full pardon.
While Blagojevich served as a Democratic governor and member of Congress, by 2024 he was a full-fledged Trump supporter.
He was among the former Democrats to attend the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee in July.
During the run-up to election day, Blagojevich pitched Trump to groups of Serbian-Americans.
Blagojevich’s father is Serbian.
That’s now put him in a strong position for the U.S. ambassadorship.
At the same time, putting a U.S. politician jailed for corruption in a country known for having issues with political corruption might not earn ‘Blago’ enough support in the U.S. Senate, where his nomination would need confirmation.
On X in late January, Blagojevich said he had told The New York Post that he was ‘not eyeing’ the ambassadorship.
‘I’m not asking President Trump for anything,’ he said. ‘I’m profoundly grateful to him for commuting my 14 year prison sentence and giving my [daughters] their father back,’ he wrote.
Blagojevich’s wife Patti had gone on Fox News to make a plea to Trump to commute her husband’s sentence while he was in jail.
The couple have two daughters – Amy and Anne.
‘What I am seeking is justice and for the truth of the corrupt prosecution against me to be exposed,’ Blagojevich continued.
Blagojevich’s remarks sang a similar tune to how Trump reacted to the four cases he was indicted in before, again, becoming president of the United States.
‘If we are going to save our democracy, lawfare and the weaponization of prosecutors for political purposes must end and those who engage in it must be brought to account,’ the ex-Democratic governor said.
Last week, Blagojevich posted pictures of his meeting with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.
‘He’s leading an economic miracle where wages increased 270%,’ Blagojevich boasted. ‘The same people who hate Trump hate him. Proud to have met the President of the country my father came from.’
X users were quick to point out that Vučić’s economy wasn’t nearly that good, while wages grew so did the cost of fuel, marking one of the highest prices in Europe.