(CNN) President Donald Trump has pardoned former New York police commissioner Bernie Kerik, he announced at Joint Base Andrews on Tuesday.

Kerik, who once served three years in federal prison for charges including tax fraud and lying to officials, was nominated as homeland security secretary by President George W. Bush but withdrew from consideration due to potential tax violations and a former household employee's questionable immigration status.

"There are no words to express my appreciation and gratitude to President Trump," Kerik tweeted in a statement.

A White House announcement on the pardon says that since the conviction, Kerik "has focused on improving the lives of others, including as a passionate advocate for criminal justice and prisoner reentry reform."

Trump also announced he had commuted the prison sentence of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich , a Democrat who has served eight years of a 14-year sentence for the pay-for-play charges. The President also issued pardons for Mike Milken , an investment banker known as the "Junk Bond King" who was convicted of felony charges that included securities fraud and conspiracy; and Eddie DeBartolo Jr. , the former owner of the San Francisco 49ers who pleaded guilty in 1998 to failing to report a felony in a bribery case.

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