The Impeachment and Imprisonment of Rod Blagojevich

​On December 9, 2008, federal agents intercepted former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich on a federal wiretap as he attempted to sell the U.S. Senate seat that Barack Obama had vacated upon his election to commander in chief. Patrick Fitzgerald, the U,S, Attorney General, dubbed the action disgraceful.

A month later, an attempt in the Illinois House of Representatives to remove Blagojevich from office resulted in a 114-1 vote in favor of impeaching him. In another vote days later, with three initial absentees now present, the votes were 117-1. The decision of many of those who voted to impeach him lay in the article of impeachment showcasing various felonies that Blagojevich may have committed.

A federal court charged Blagojevich with several counts of abuse of power in April. Other than committing the felony of attempting to sell the Senate seat, he was accused of various misconduct and plots in exchange for campaign contributions. Such acts included awarding state contracts, permits, and authorization, releasing pediatric care reimbursements to healthcare providers and institutions in Illinois, and misconduct in signing legislation that diverted revenues from casinos to the horse racing industry.

The former governor was also indicted for disregarding the separation of power as he refused to acknowledge the Joint Committee's authority on their administrative duties to prohibit or suspend rules. He also broke the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act by unilaterally expanding a state program, which was against federal and state laws. After finding Blagojevich guilty of 18 charges, the grand jury handed him a 14-year prison sentence. The sentence was upheld despite the court panel later dismissing five charges in response to his appeal to shorten his prison term.

Blagojevich's silver lining came eight years later when president Trump commuted his sentence in February 2020. Trump, who vied for the presidency under a Republican ticket, believed the sentence of Blagojevich, a Democrat, to be unfair. At one point, Trump claimed that he saw no valid reason for the ex-governor to be in prison for all those years over a phone call where nothing occurred. The former governor thanked the president and praised him for his kindness.

Trump's decision to effectively shorten Blagojevich's sentence received backlash, with some Republican congressmen in Illinois criticizing the president, claiming that Blagojevich exemplified corruption in the state and that he was unremorseful for his actions, undermining the trust of those who elected him. Democratic Representative Bill Pascrell also slammed Trump, saying Blagojevich's actions were heinous.

Blagojevich filed a lawsuit immediately after he was released from prison to challenge a Senate decision that barred him from holding any public office. Blagojevich included two state organizations as defendants in the case: the State of Illinois and the Illinois General Assembly. This inclusion violated the 11th Amendment, which prohibits citizens from suing state-level organizations. The dispute, also being considered political in nature, presented a hurdle. Eventually, the decision to ban him from holding office was ruled constitutionally valid.

While free now, the ex-governor still has to work together with the system he has sharply criticized in the past. The U.S. Sentencing Commission, for instance, requires him to abide by standard rules such as taking regular drug tests, giving authorities a sample of his DNA, performing community service, and not engaging in any form of crime, whether at the federal, state, or local level.

Jack Franks

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