When news broke that the FBI had raided the office and hotel room of President Trump’s longtime personal lawyer Michael Cohen, it sent shockwaves throughout the country. Republicans, Democrats, lawyers, and legal scholars immediately began to question how such an act could ever be justified.

Right after the news broke, Fox News host Laura Ingraham (who has a law degree from the University of Virginia) tweeted:



If by raiding the office of @realDonaldTrump’s attorney, the @fbi violated Trump’s attorney-client privilege, this is about to get really ugly. — Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) April 9, 2018



And she’s right.

But how did we get to this level of abuse of powers? Look no further than these three characters, or creatures of the swamp: Robert Mueller, James Comey, and Patrick Fitzgerald.

Mueller, the former FBI director and now special counsel, is the one that recommended the unprecedented and highly controversial raid of Cohen’s office and hotel room, in coordination with the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of New York. And the investigation into collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia which Mueller oversees? A total witch hunt filled with lies and fake news.

Comey, the former FBI director and now author, is busy promoting his new book on the speaking circuit. But we all remember Comey as the guy who recommended against filing criminal charges targeting Hillary Clinton for her handling of classified information while secretary of state, as well as the guy who shared a highly sensitive memo (relating to conversations Comey had as FBI director with Trump) with a friend who promptly leaked it to the press. Comey hoped the leak would lead to the appointment of a special counsel to investigate collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.

And Fitzgerald? He’s Comey’s best friend and the former U.S. attorney in Illinois. Comey and Fitzgerald became fast friends when they both worked in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. And during a congressional hearing , Comey referred to Fitzgerald as “one of the finest federal prosecutors there is, if not ever.” And just recently, Comey hired Fitzgerald to join his legal team.

So why does this all matter?

In 2008, then-FBI Director Mueller authorized a totally unnecessary and ruthless predawn raid on then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich of Illinois. Blagojevich, a Democrat, was arrested in front of his two terrified young daughters. He supposedly conspired pay-to-play schemes to fill then-President Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat. The arrest and subsequent trial made national headlines. The fame-hungry federal prosecutor in the case? None other than Comey’s best friend, Fitzgerald.

The Blagojevich case is one that should make every political candidate and elected official very nervous. At its very core, the question remains: What constitutes illegal political fundraising? So long as the answer remains fuzzy, both candidates for office and elected officials better watch out — a routine political fundraising call could send you to prison for 14 years.

Political fundraising is a necessary evil in politics. Everybody fundraises. Professional fundraisers earn lots of money, and politicians raise lots of money. You can’t win or retain your elected position without fundraising. And that’s why it is problematic for anyone in politics that the U.S. Supreme Court recently rejected hearing Blagojevich’s appeal.

That's a shame, because we need the Supreme Court's guidance dearly. Without it, every candidate and public official is at risk of imprisonment.

As Blagojevich's lawyers wrote in their appeal to the Supreme Court, in McCormick v. United States, it was decided that "extortion based on soliciting campaign contributions requires a quid pro quo in the explicit promise or undertaking by a public official." In Evans v. United States, the Supreme Court "blurred the relative clarity of the McCormick ruling." And because of these two rulings, there is confusion at the lower courts.

Former Gov. Bob McDonnell of Virginia, once a rising star in the Republican Party, was found guilty of accepting more than $130,000 in gifts from a donor-friend who needed the governor’s office and influence to help to save his struggling company. The gifts made national headlines, with pictures of McDonnell driving around in a Ferrari, a $20,000 shopping spree in New York, and a $6,000 Rolex. In the end, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned his conviction.

Time spent in prison? Zero days.

Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., accepted donations and gifts from his wealthy friend Salomon Melgen in exchange for political influence. Melgen provided Menendez with trips on private jets, hotel rooms, and contributed nearly $75,000 to his political campaign. In the end, his trial concluded with a hung jury, and the Justice Department then filed to dismiss all remaining charges. And last Thursday, the Senate Ethics Committee “severely admonished” the senator for accepting gifts over a six-year period.

Time spent in prison? Zero days.

Unlike the cases of McDonnell and Menendez, Blagojevich never accepted lavish gifts, flew on private jets, took luxurious vacations, drove around in a Ferrari, or wore Rolexes in exchange for his political influence. And yet he is serving 14 years in prison as a first-time offender.

Blagojevich is the victim of overzealous prosecutors and law enforcement officials who are more obsessed with their own personal fame than they are with the facts. These predawn raids on government officials and friends of government officials must end. This type of behavior is consistent with what we’d see thugs do, and it’s both aggressive and unnecessary.

While Blagojevich sits in prison for 14 years, as his family suffers at home because of his absence, people like Clinton, Menendez, and McDonnell are out enjoying the good life. The Clinton Foundation was clearly engaged in pay-to-play politics while she was secretary of state, yet nothing has happened with regards to an investigation or even an inquiry into their fundraising activities. A total disgrace.

Mueller, Comey, and Fitzgerald must be denied their swamp water. And Trump should make a big splash by sending Blagojevich back home.

Sound crazy? Kristen McQueary of the Chicago Tribune largely agrees with me.

Six years already served is six years too long. The governor and his family have suffered enough.

Mark Vargas (@MarkAVargas) is a tech entrepreneur, political adviser, and contributor to the Washington Examiner's Beltway Confidential blog.