Entire House GOP Delegation From Illinois Blasts Trump Decision to Commute Blagojevich’s Sentence
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Illinois Republicans are really not happy with President Donald Trump’s decision to commute the sentence of former Democratic governor Rod Blagojevich.
Last year, when this idea came up, the Illinois House GOP delegation — Adam Kinzinger, Darin LaHood, John Shimkus, Mike Bost, and Rodney Davis — issued a statement saying a commutation of Blagojevich’s sentence would set “a dangerous precedent”:
“It’s important that we take a strong stand against pay-to-play politics, especially in Illinois where four of our last eight Governors have gone to federal prison for public corruption,” the congressmen wrote.
The state’s Republican delegation previously wrote to Trump in June 2018, also to oppose a presidential commutation of Blagojevich’s sentence. The Thursday statement renewed the call after Trump told reporters a day earlier that he felt Blagojevich’s seven years in prison had been enough.
Well, Trump finally did it today, and those same Illinois Republicans are not happy.
“We are disappointed by the President’s commutation of Rod Blagojevich’s federal sentence. We believe he received an appropriate and fair sentence, which was the low-end of the federal sentencing guidelines for the gravity of hs public corruption convictions,” they say.
The Illinois Republican delegation is not happy.
"Blagojevich is the face of public corruption in Illinois, and not once has he shown any remorse for his clear and documented record of egregious crimes that undermined the trust placed in him by voters." pic.twitter.com/nyn3Av0wQ6
— Kathryn Watson (@kathrynw5) February 18, 2020
