President Trump Donald John TrumpObama calls on Senate not to fill Ginsburg's vacancy until after election Planned Parenthood: 'The fate of our rights' depends on Ginsburg replacement Progressive group to spend M in ad campaign on Supreme Court vacancy MORE on Tuesday granted clemency to almost a dozen individuals, including former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) and ex-New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, sparking criticism from both Democrats and Republicans.

"I did commute [Blagojevich's] sentence. So he’ll be able to go back home with his family after serving eight years in jail," Trump told reporters in reference to the disgraced Illinois governor who had served roughly half of a 14-year sentence on federal corruption charges. "That was a tremendously powerful, ridiculous sentence in my opinion, and in the opinion of many others."

Trump just confirmed reports he has commuted the sentence of Rod Blagojevich, noting that the former Illinois governor is a Democrat, and was once a contestant on "The Apprentice" pic.twitter.com/YZQVqhwKk0 — QuickTake by Bloomberg (@QuickTake) February 18, 2020

The commutation, confirmed by Trump before departing for a multi-day trip out west, concludes more than a year's worth of hemming and hawing within the White House over whether to intervene in the Blagojevich case.

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Blagojevich was removed from office in 2009 and was later convicted of a wide array of corruption charges, including attempted extortion of a children's hospital for campaign contributions and trying to sell former President Obama’s Senate seat after he was elected to the White House in 2008. The former governor began serving a 14-year prison sentence in 2012.

He was infamously caught on tape speaking about the pay-for-play scheme involving Obama's seat.

"I've got this thing, and it's f-----g golden. I'm just not giving it up for f-----g nothing," Blagojevich said in a recorded phone call.

The president first floated a commutation for Blagojevich in 2018. The two men knew each other previously from when the former governor appeared as a contestant on "Celebrity Apprentice."

Trump broached the topic again last August, telling reporters aboard Air Force One that he was inclined to commute Blagojevich's sentence.

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"You have drug dealers that get not even 30 days, and they’ve killed 25 people," Trump said. "They put him in jail for 18 years, and he has many years left. And I think it’s very unfair."

A handful of Illinois political figures — including Sen. Dick Durbin Richard (Dick) Joseph DurbinMcConnell focuses on confirming judicial nominees with COVID-19 talks stalled Senate Republicans signal openness to working with Biden Top GOP senator calls for Biden to release list of possible Supreme Court picks MORE (D) and the Rev. Jesse Jackson — have come out in support of reducing Blagojevich's jail time.

“Former Governor Blagojevich betrayed the people of Illinois and engaged in a pattern of corrupt behavior for which he was held accountable and which cost him more than seven years of freedom," Durbin said in a statement on Tuesday after the commutation was announced. He went on to call for the Illinois and federal governments to pass stricter ethics requirements.

An official for Durbin added that the senator "never lobbied any President" to commute Blagojevich's sentence. Durbin had publicly expressed that he felt the sentence was too long.

But members of the Illinois House Republican delegation issued a statement last year amid talk of clemency for Blagojevich discouraging Trump from the move, citing the state's long history of corrupt governors.

Five congressional Republicans from Illinois issued a statement Tuesday afternoon voicing their disapproval with Trump's decision, calling Blagojevich "the face of public corruption in Illinois" and noting the ex-governor had not shown any remorse for his actions.

"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," Reps. Darin LaHood Darin McKay LaHoodAmerica can't afford to ignore the food service distribution industry On The Money: McConnell previews GOP coronavirus bill | Senate panel advances Trump Fed nominee who recently supported gold standard | Economists warn about scaled-back unemployment benefits Bipartisan bill introduced to provide tax credit to food and beverage distributors MORE, John Shimkus John Mondy ShimkusBottom line Bottom Line Overnight Energy: Trump rolls back Obama-era fuel efficiency standards | Controversial Keystone XL construction to proceed | Pressure mounts to close national parks amid pandemic MORE, Adam Kinzinger Adam Daniel KinzingerFox News reporter defends confirming Atlantic piece despite Trump backlash: 'I feel very confident' GOP lawmaker defends Fox reporter after Trump calls for her firing Lindsey Graham: 'QAnon is bats--- crazy' MORE, Rodney Davis Rodney Lee DavisHouse passes legislation to boost election security research House Republicans investigating California secretary of state's contract with Biden-linked firm House Democrats' campaign arm releases ads hitting 10 Republicans on health care MORE and Mike Bost Michael (Mike) J. BostMORE said in the statement.

The top Republican in the Illinois statehouse also slammed Trump's move on Tuesday, saying the president must not be "concerned about the state of Illinois for next November."

The former governor has advocated for a pardon or a reduced sentence for years, appealing directly to Trump in some cases.

Blagojevich's wife, Patti, regularly appeared on Fox News to make the case for clemency, and the governor penned an op-ed from prison in January in which he ripped House Democrats for impeaching Trump, claiming lawmakers would have done the same to Abraham Lincoln.