He went to prison for eight years after trying to 'sell' Obama's Senate seat and was freed by Trump... whatever happened to Governor Rod Blagojevich?

By NIKKI SCHWAB, CHIEF CAMPAIGN CORRESPONDENT Published: 20:55, 21 May 2026 | Updated: 21:03, 21 May 2026 These days, former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is enjoying his second chance at making a 'good living.' The Democrat traded a 50,000sq ft mansion for a 6-by-8 prison cell after he was caught on an FBI wiretap trying to auction off Barack Obama's vacated Senate seat to the highest bidder in 2008. In February 2020, Republican President Donald Trump granted him a full pardon, something Blagojevich remains immensely thankful for, he told the Daily Mail in a phone interview this week.  'Well, every day's a new adventure,' the former governor, now 69, said. 'I've been given this new beginning by President Trump, which I firmly believe he acted as an instrument of God, because it was a miracle that brought me home from the deep, dark valley that I was in.'  With COVID striking almost immediately after Blagojevich returned home to his wife and two daughters, it took some time to get back on track – not least because he was making only $62 a year while locked up.  So, six years after walking out of prison, what's he up to now?  'I do consulting, I do some lobbying, and I have a book coming out ... called "Framed, F***ed and Freed,"' he revealed.  Yes, that really is the title, with the four-letter word slightly obscured on the cover.  Democratic Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich (center) stands alongside Senator Dick Durbin (left) and then Senator Barack Obama (right) in 2005. Blagojevich was a major player in Illinois politics before being impeached and sent to federal prison for eight years Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich arrives for his trial in Chicago in 2010. He pleaded not guilty to charges of corruption that included accusations that he tried to sell President Barack Obama's Senate seat Blagojevich said the book, due for release this fall, 'is the story that starts with one president, Obama, ends with another, Donald Trump. Governor Rod Blagojevich's mug shot following his arrest on corruption charges in December 2008 'And most of it's about a governor in prison with Crips and Bloods and Gangster Disciples and Sinaloa Cartel drug dealers, who look up to the drug lord El Chapo like my daughters look up to Taylor Swift. 'I was in there with murderers. I went from a 50,000-square-foot governor's mansion to a six-foot-by-eight-foot prison cell. I went from talking to Obama one day to Smelly Socks and Mr B on another day,' he said, in reference to the nicknames of fellow inmates. Blagojevich said he felt an obligation to help his 'long-suffering family' financially after leaving prison.  He has done so, in part, by registering to become a foreign lobbyist, representing the Republic of Srpska.  'It's the part of the former Yugoslavia where my grandparents on my mother's side come from,' he explained.  There is also the work he is doing to help Anne Pramaggiore, the former CEO of Illinois utility giant Commonwealth Edison, through the clemency process.  Pramaggiore, he contends, was scapegoated by the political powers and is 'completely innocent.'  Former Democratic Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich (left) poses with President Donald Trump (right) in May 2024, when Trump was out of office and running for a second term  Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich (center) is photographed as he leaves federal prison in February 2020 after being granted a full pardon by President Donald Trump  The former CEO was convicted in a bribery scandal involving the ex-Illinois House Speaker.  She reported to federal prison in January for a two-year sentence but was released in April after being granted a new trial on appeal.  Others seeking pardons from the President have come to Blagojevich, too, though he wouldn't name names. 'I turn down most of them because I don't feel like I should ask the Trump administration for anything that's not worthy, right?' he said.  Blagojevich is also involved with Weaponization Watch, a group that provides resources to people who believe they have been treated unfairly by a 'rogue' government.   As a side hustle, he continues to do Cameos – those custom video messages for fans made by an assortment of celebrities for money.  'I think the most wild one was when I got a request from a guy... to send to his boss to tell him that he's quitting his job. And that he didn't like how the boss treated him at the job,' the former governor recalled.  Asked if the man was a happy customer, Blagojevich said: 'I got a five-star rating and like a $20 tip or something.' Former Governor Rod Blagojevich (left) attends a White House Christmas party with FBI Director Kash Patel (right)  As for a political future, he said he was approached about running for the US Senate after Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin announced his retirement.  Blagojevich considers himself a 'Trumpocrat' – a Trump supporter who is still willing to back some Democrats.  In the Illinois Democratic Senate primary, he supported Representative Robin Kelly, who lost to Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton, the candidate backed by the state's billionaire governor, JB Pritzker.  'I hope I didn't hurt her. I don't think I did,' he said, describing Kelly as a 'good, good person' who he got to know while serving as governor.  'I'm for good people. After going through what I've gone through, I'm for a Democrat if the Democrat is good, I'm for a Republican if a Republican is good,' he explained.  'And I call myself a "Trumpocrat" because I do believe President Trump is a great president doing great things for America, and I truly think he is making America great again.' He said he supports Trump's decision to go to war with Iran, arguing that the nuclear threat is real.  Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich attends a service for the late civil rights activist Jesse Jackson in Chicago, Illinois in March  But he did have one gripe about the man who granted him his freedom.   'Well, I mean, look, I love Trump and almost everything he does. I think it's great,' he said. 'However, not everything do I agree with. For example, my daughters love Taylor Swift. I wish he didn't say he hated Taylor Swift.' Blagojevich's case was already on Trump's radar because the two men had filmed a season of Celebrity Apprentice in 2009.  He said he had also been courted to do Dancing with the Stars but the filming would have clashed with one of his cases going to trial.  With talk of an Apprentice reboot, Blagojevich said he would be open to doing it again – but only if asked.  'Now, would I do another reality show? You know, I don't know. I wouldn't rule it out. Reality shows have been good to me and my family, right?' he mused.  'Look, if Trump asked me to do almost anything, I would do it,' he said, 'because I'm so grateful.'  He called it an 'improbable convergence of events' that first brought him into Trump's orbit 'way before he was President or anybody even thought he would be.'  Blagojevich also marveled that 'they would do to Trump what they did to me.'  Trump has long complained that he has been unfairly targeted by the government.  During his four years out of office, he was indicted on 88 criminal counts, a mix of state and federal charges.  'All of that has to serve some larger purpose,' Blagojevich said. 'That's why it's important for me to be active in the Weaponization Watch organization and to advocate and try to be helpful in areas of criminal justice reform.'   The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. 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