Former Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich recognizes that daunting challenges await as prosecutors prepare to mount a new effort to convict him on corruption charges, but he told ABC News Friday he sees a triumphant political comeback in his future that will be no less dramatic than the one pulled off by Winston Churchill.
“I’m not ruling out doing something I’ve spent my whole adult life doing,” Blagojevich said when asked about a possible return to politics. “I believe some of the greatest stories in history are some of the great comebacks. You think about Winston Churchill, I mean he spent years in the political wilderness … . If Churchill can comeback from something like that, when I’m vindicated, I certainly don’t write myself off.”
Blagojevich sat down with ABC News Chief Investigative Correspondent Brian Ross Friday as he embarked on a media tour aimed at recovering his reputation in the aftermath of a (mostly) favorable courtroom verdict – a jury this week found him guilty on only one of 24 counts, lying to federal agents. The panel could not find agreement any of the corruption charges, including most sensational government claim, that he attempted to cash-in the senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama for a new job or for campaign contributions.
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My favourite Chicago politician. A media gift, until “they”, find some way to silence him and give him an all expense paid trip to jail. He will be deemed dangerous and placed in solitary confinement – no visitors, no interviews, no phone calls to the lawyer, no “yard” privileges, maybe even a leather mask –aka Hannibal. Cheers. ps – the good news, I now know how to spell Blagojevich without spell check. lol
If lying to the FBI is the only crime he remains convicted of but the rest didn’t stick then what exactly did he tell the FBI that was a lie ?
So lets say a FBI agent asks you what day it it and you tell him it’s Tuesday when it’s actually Monday and you lied deliberately does this merit 30 years in jail !
Unless under oath lying to Government officials shouldn’t be a crime unless one is actually found guilty of something related to the lie. The smart thing may be to just refuse to give them the time of day or which day it is !
Freedom of speech should also mean not owing the truth to Government officials ! If the FBI can prove an actual crime sure the lie(s) could be an aggravating factor at sentencing but the lie itself shouldn’t be a crime in my opinion.