Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is happy as a lark after Pres. Donald Trump commuted his 14-year prison sentence on Tuesday to the point; he declared himself a “Trumpocrat.”

Blagojevich expressed his gratitude to Trump with reporters in a Denver airport after he was released when he said; “He’s got a big fan in me, if you’re asking me what my party affiliation is, I’m a Trumpocrat.”

“He obviously didn’t have to do this,” he continued. “He’s a Republican president, I was Democratic governor, and my fellow Democrats haven’t exactly been very nice to him,” he continued.

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Blagojevich is correct. Trump didn’t have to do this, but the President knows how to use the media like puppets. They dance to the beat of his drum, and whatever he wants them to talk about, all Trump has to do is drop a nugget.

What’s better to overshadow a Democratic debate than to release a former Democratic governor with a pardon along with others. Trump is a mastermind right now and couple that along with the campaign rallies planned for the states conducting Democrat primaries and caucuses and he’s doing things never seen by a sitting president to overshadow the other party.

The ex-governor attempted to sell Obama’s vacated Senate seat and went to prison for it. Rightly so, an attempted crime is still a crime, whether the crime succeeds or not. (He floated the idea around in conversation but never actually went through with it.)

In 2011, Blagojevich was convicted of wire fraud, attempted extortion, soliciting bribes, conspiracy to commit extortion, and conspiracy to solicit and accept bribes, and sentenced to 14 years in prison. The year before, he appeared on The Apprentice, where he bombed a Harry Potter-related task. Trump admonished him for sharing “inaccurate” facts about the boy wizard, and once Blagojevich began blathering about “Slithering and Hufflepuff and Ravencloth,” it was all over. On Tuesday, Trump announced he had commuted Blagojevich’s sentence, but didn’t mention anything about once firing him from his reality show. “He served eight years in jail, a long time,” Trump said. “He seems like a very nice person — don’t know him.” Reporters spotted Blagojevich on Tuesday night, as he prepared to board a flight from Denver to Chicago. Blagojevich shared that while in prison, he thought a lot about the “broken and unfair criminal justice system” and how there are “too many people who have too much power who don’t have any accountability.” He expressed his “most profound and everlasting gratitude to President Trump,” adding that “he’s a Republican president, I was a Democratic governor. My fellow Democrats have not been very kind to him — in fact, they’ve been very unkind to him. If you’re asking me what my party affiliation is, I’m a Trumpocrat.” [The Week]

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ANNOUNCEMENT: Rod Blagojevich Homecoming Press Conferece: Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2020 at the Blagojevich Family Residence. 11:00 am (CST). — Patti Blagojevich (@pblagojevich) February 19, 2020

Many people I know agree that Blagojevich did receive a comparatively very harsh sentence. If the severity of the sentence was intended to set an example and send a message to other would-be corrupt politicians, did it work? Have Chicago politicians become any less corrupt as a result of this example?

In addition to serving years in prison, Blago’s political career is over, and his reputation is permanently stained. (All jokes aside about his proven corruption being ideal credentials for a job in Democrat politics.)

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Now that he has been released, I think Blago should go hide under a rock and be happy he can choose the rock. It appears the politicians throughout the country are competing to see who can release the most or the worst criminals back onto the streets while trying to disarm the citizens who have to deal with them. It’s a trend that goes back and forth over the years. The good news is the voters will get sick of it and become more energized.

If Pres. Trump can do an act of kindness for a Democrat while making liberals gnash their teeth in frustration at the same time; I’m okay with that.

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