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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Trump says he’s considering commutation for Blagojevich

President Donald Trump talks to reporters aboard Air Force One after visiting Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2019. (Evan Vucci / AP)
Associated Press

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump says he’s “very strongly” considering commuting the sentence of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who is serving a 14-year prison term for multiple federal corruption convictions.

Trump suggested more than a year ago that he was considering a commutation for Blagojevich, who then filed paperwork requesting one.

The Republican president told reporters Wednesday night while returning to Washington that he thought Blagojevich, a Democrat, had been treated “unbelievably unfairly.”

Trump says he’s taking into consideration Blagojevich’s wife and children and what was, in his view, mere braggadocio.

Blagojevich’s wife, Patti, reacted by tweeting that Trump’s comments about her husband, who has been in federal prison since 2012, leave her family hopeful that their “nightmare might soon be over.”