>> i still occasionally talked to mark, who declined to participate in this documentary. i think because of how guilty he feels about what this all did to his four sons. he says he's working hard on those relationships and maybe i'm a fool. but i believe them >> scandals the capitate people. scandals take people completely out the game. and mark sanford, that didn't happen tomorrow and didn't get impeached, but he finished his term and he actually won another race for the united states congress by being honest to himself, being honest to his conservative political values, and being honest with the public the real mark sanford was able to shake the perfection of the past and start building a new story. even if it took him, a long walk along the appalachian trail to get them

>> every day in every state across the country our political system is bankrolled by an army of fundraisers pulling in millions of dollars a >> race. sometimes it looks like you might have imagine knocking on doors, calling every name in the phonebook and emails, so many emails. but for all those little fish throwing 100 to their local race, it's the whales, those campaign fundraisers really need powerful, rich individuals and companies. and when they donate 25,000, 100,000 once in $1 they want a favor or ten. >> it should be >> obvious that that's corrupt, >> but with a wink and nod political deals to the bribery line every single day. and we may never have noticed that if a certain illinois governor

hadn't flung back the curtain within unrepentant ego, a political corruption, crime spree in a set of unprecedented audio recordings that shined a bright light on the inner workings of american political power. ladies and gentlemen meet rod blagojevich's >> it was early morning because i used to get up every morning and turn on the sixth of cloud news. then, you know, like you can awake him up and then you're like, well, wait, what? >> oh s&p dow side of a boy adventures house. they got cameras, they got cars and then they march amount and yellow eye that's a governor joe >> breaking news, the illinois

governor, rod blagojevich's charged with plotting to sell barack obama's former senate seat. >> remember this guy he sure hopes he do. governor rod blagojevich's went down in a blaze of infamy for one of the largest political corruption scandals of our time. >> the governor was allegedly trying to sell the illinois senate seat vacated by president elect obama in fact, part of the governor sales pitch who's at the seats still had that new obama smith appointing someone to the senate is a rare opportunity when the will of the people is swapped wholesale for a gubernatorial power trip will go over had the sole authority to place whomever he wanted straight into the halls of the us senate. and he was not shy about wanting a little something in return. with the fbi recording his phone calls for the first time since nixon, the public was able to listen in on raw backroom politics. and there's nothing quite like hearing it from the horse's mouth the criminal complaint

quotes blagojevich's saying the senate seat was a valuable thing. you just don't give it away for nothing. another quote, i've got this thing and it's bleeping golden. >> i've got this thing >> go and i'm just not given an off >> i've got this thing and it's gold. yeah >> i'm not just giving it up for nothing >> was there a second then they're racking up a staggering 24 criminal charges. governor blagojevich's actions essentially boil down to four thing extortion, bribery, corruption, and wire fraud >> and it wasn't just about the senate seat >> will go to his also found guilty of extorting a children's hospital. you can't write this stuff. >> he is an arrogant punk who thinks that, you know, he's bulletproof well, he's not he was convicted on 18 total charges and sentenced to 14 years, the longest sentence ever handed down to a governor

>> people loathe the >> image for the way he politics, but was what he did. so blatantly criminal because the truth is that the line between what's illegal and what's allowable is much murkier than we'd like to thank and this is where the rod blagojevich's story gets interesting. >> let me reassert to all of you, wants more that i am not guilty of any criminal wrongdoing. >> was rod a corrupt politician or just a politician operating in a corrupt system that's still thrives to this day. >> so, governor, thanks for doing this. thank you. so you've been out of prison now for almost two years, little over two years and you're still very outspoken about how you feel like the case against you was unjust. there isn't really an argument about what you said. it's on hey, by the question, is whether it was illegal and whether it was morally wrong. >> look, if you're saying do

we have a fundraising system in america that you could argue is legalized bribery. i think there's truth to that. but did i do anything other than that standard that every other person in politics does from president biden on down i did the same as them and nothing worse. >> there is >> this real problem in american politics today. where prosecutors are weaponizing themselves, criminalizing routine and legal practices and government politics. and i think it's wrong they do to bill clinton. it's wrong. i think when they did it to president trump because i have strong views on that and i know it was wrong when they did it to me >> okay. well, that's one factor >> let's talk about the chicago in illinois system because you're hardly the first governor in history, even in recent history, to go to prison what's the situation? here that causes this to happen >> well, i think it's time honored here and there's a long history in chicago politics, illinois politics, but pretty much everybody gets rich >> chicago >> politics. it's like go into

a paper. when you go fishing, like give you are prosecutor, you can not be in illinois camila and not get something illinois steeped in a rich history of political corruption that dates back a century to the prohibition era, when bootlegging gangster such as al capone bought off politicians and police departments, keeping them drunk on power, and also just drunk in rides lifetime, illinois has developed a rap sheet that any mobster would be proud of. >> more than 1,700 >> convictions for corruption, including nearly 30 chicago alderman, eight state legislators to us congressmen and before rod came onto the scene three governors in an odd way, the very people who should hate the idea of corruption or kind of proud that this is al capone illinois. chicago is a wink and nod town. it's a shotgun, a beer town a lot of it has to do a family relationships because a lot of the political leadership in

chicago in illinois, our family related, there's the daily family. madigan all of these families sort of become part of this mafia. a political mafia and they're the ones who make the rules i didn't come from that. i had to marry into it. i've met a girl in 6 march 1988. she was wearing a red dress and she happened to be the daughter of a old-fashioned chicago political ward boss and she's my wife pad we found the love. >> paddy will go evich is a loyal wife. she is a tough customer, and she's the daughter of dick male. she's complicated >> that budding relationship between those two is how rod goes from this. nobody politically finding a way to embed i'm self into one of these big political families in chicago that has so much power. i don't think it was some great surprise that when it comes time to meet the parents, that dick male was the

father-in-law and the powerful city council chieftain in a shrine to work together to for disgraced city back together so that all all part of it are you all for free >> dick mill was a guy who always had a voice in the back rooms. he was a powerbroker in that kind of chicago classic sense. >> before politics, it was a nice relationship, but for the most part, respectful and then because i was in the family and i was actually pretty good at helping her dad local politics, knocking on doors and trying to get them votes. there was an opportunity to run for office in rod blagojevich's melt could see a guy that eventually if he doesn't write, i could sort of pass the mantle toward rod was an immediate hit with >> illinois voters who sent him first to the state house in 1992 and then to the us congress in 1996. >> dig mill says i can see you being governor and i gotta be honest, i'm sure if i'm looking at it from dig male's position, he's saying, man, if i can elect this guy governor,

i can run the whole state that night out on the ice, he saw something. >> i saw nothing either with some as charming man, you're ever going to meet or he was your worst nightmare >> he was bad man. >> you've adopted a kid and now they're trying to kill you, want people puts the pay for what they've done you have to dig to get to the truth >> this is going to bad for everybody it's easy to think that all money managers are pretty much the same but if fisher investments were clearly different, different how you saw high commission investment products, right? >> no fish or avoids them well, you must earn commissions on trains, never at fisher investments. >> okay. and then you probably sneak in some hidden and layered feats. >> know, we structure our face so we do better when clients do better, that might be why most of our clients come from other

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to connect with the higher power, because we need that, we need strength and comfort. >> businesses go further with 5g solution that's why they choose t-mobile for business. >> pga of >> america and t-mobile for partnering on 5g powered analytics to help improve player performance t-mobile's network helps to aaa stay connected nationwide to give their members back on the road. and las vegas, graham prix joe's t-mobile to help fuel operations for one of the world's largest racing it's now, the time to see what america's largest 5g network can do for your business >> the campaign for illinois governor has gotten pretty lively. you've got chicago congressman rod blagojevich's what's that name again? >> the logic of it will of pelagic fish chicago elite was a >> definite bonus, but it was rods working class bona fides

and people skills that did all the rest coming from the family. >> did >> he had a real working class chip? on his shoulder and his two heroes, we're elvis and richard nixon both because they were guys who came from the wrong side of their tracks and fought their way up. and we're kind of distain by the elites. >> in fact, if those two gritty 20th century icons fought their way into a single person, you might actually end up up with rod blagojevich's for better and for worse. >> rod blagojevich's that i first met was youthful. he was energetic. he had this kind of maine, a black hair that was super thick and you could tell it just filled with hair product >> the hair. >> so i conic and its own right that it became a comedy staple on every line late-night show up >> that's also wearing >> a two pay huge infatuation with all this personally >> his charisma was disarming

but the elvis of illinois was >> itching to lose his colonel parker because despite the many benefits of dick mills patronage, rod was still in his shadow. >> you know, he really became known as dick mills, son-in-law, first and i know we hated that. he didn't know how to both be his own man and not let dick nell overshadowing. >> the only way for rod to survive outside of his father-in-law's machine was to create his own cash flow so his first step was to hire two of chicago's most bare-knuckle political fundraisers chris kelly, and tony rescue chris, kelly and tony roscoe could generate big box. >> they were >> fundraisers, they were donors. >> you know, let's just call them what they were there were influence peddlers >> they want bound up, being able to shake the bushes here. and help rod raise money.

>> they promised access and favors if glucose of its one, and they got results we're dick mills, good old boys would fetch $2,000 at a time. kelly and rascoe would shake loose 50 grand. all that money plus rods appeal to voters who had felt ignored by the entrenched chicago political dynasties well, it proved to be an unstoppable combination. >> he ran on some things that were uniquely important to black people and health care for kids is a good idea when he said free rides for seniors on public transportation, that resonated with black people specifically laguardia, which became governor in 2003. >> graduations governor may god bless how, do you view your time >> as governor apart from the scandals, how do i say this in a way where i don't sound like a guy without any humility. but i truly believe i was a great

governor. i can't think of any governor in my life that did anything for anybody i knew they can walk around and say, you know what? thank you. governor, my daughter had health care through you, free public transportation for seniors and disabled. i did that because they raised the sales tax, which hurts working people and poor people and seniors with the legislature raising taxes that hit lower-income illinois and hardest and rods striking back with policies to offset that, it's no surprise is that his populist agenda made him a lot of enemies amongst the big political families to the people in the masses. he was on our team and to the aristocracy into the political elites. he was this guy that was taking their resources and giving him to the peasants and so he became robin hood i knew the reality that i'm going to have resistance from the old guard, the old board bosses, the vatican's daily to some extent, my father-in-law. and so the goal was raised money now and raise a lot of it so that you can afford to make enemies and you can afford to lose support, right?

>> but some of these people that you were relying on like chris kelvin they were crowned, right >> it turned out that chris had problems in his own personal business and he was found guilty of those things and doesn't do with me. but >> like a lot of the people in the world of fundraising or not necessarily, they are not upstanding individual there now, yeah. no, they're not. >> what's the saying? ignorance is not a defense. >> tony rascoe and chris kelly started compiling this list of different entities that were stay contractors and hit all of those people up for money, probably with rods assistance hey, you've got a contract you want to keep it where you wanna get more. you got to pony up a lot of people in play have scalpel like tendencies when they fundraise and rod was probably more of a meat cleaver >> kelly and rascoe, we're using government levers to squeeze anyone they could for a campaign contribution. kickbacks like a cushy job or a fat contract. a little light

extortion such as holding up teachers funds they had deep pockets to fill and a financial machine to do it. >> you can't trade official actions as a governor can exchange for campaign contributions are jobs. i mean, there's one simple word for that. it's called graft graft is simply the use of political power and authority in exchange for personal gain to state the obvious appointing >> unqualified people to stay positions because you want to use the government as a vending machine for your political campaign? that's completely illegal >> the >> mo was to make money from every state petitioner possible and small-town hospital ceo pam davis, looked like just another easy mark. >> in this case, the whole shakedown process is recorded by the hospital executive who is getting shaken down >> oh god, another wire i don't care the governor really

wasn't on my radar at all until i experienced an extortion attempt through one of his colleagues pam's hospital system wanted to build a new facility in plainfield, illinois. seems pretty straightforward, but there were red flags right away when she went to get government approval for the project >> in my case, the governor had appointed individuals to this board who have either contributed money to his campaign. so they bought their way on or individuals that were controlled by the governor and other individuals and would approve only those projects where a kickback was going to be given. >> turns out the board was willing to approve the hospital. all she had to do was use builders and lenders who were in their pocket and pad the contract. so the board could take let's call it a transaction fee for their trouble >> it became clear to me that this was a major extortion attempt. and i was furious. so

i called the fbi >> the fed set her up with a wire so they could listen in on her meetings with board members and get the dirt straight from the source? >> she'd be meeting with these players and they would be basically laying out the whole scheme to her contract would be padded by roughly $10 million. so that that money would go then to the various players at one point, i decided i'm wonder if this goes up to the governor because the governor appoints these individuals to the various boards >> the feds were wondering the same thing and over the course of their investigation, their suspicions proved to be spot on via headliner las vegas that's what i want to do. >> it's unlike anywhere else hello. >> vegas. the story of sin city

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>> to >> three-to-one, three-to-one today, anderson cooper 360 monday at eight on cnn >> close captioning brought to you by in vet help call 180071 000, 20 >> do you have an invention idea, but don't know what to do next. collin van help today, they can help you get started with your idea called now 807100020 >> out of the public eye rods fundraising goons, chris, kali and tony rascoe felt safe to strong arm money from donors across illinois but unbeknownst to them, the fbi was following their every move as part of a far-reaching corruption investigation into the blagojevich's administration as the money rolled in, their role in rods administration only grew which had his father-in-law dich mal feeling as though he'd been served divorce papers as dick mill famously said, he got replaced by a trophy wife or trophy wives those were the people who are getting the

>> love that he should have gotten and wasn't getting >> we all noted you got here because of dig mel rod says, i got my own team and so don't talk to dig male. not only does he not do what you want to do, but he say don't talk to my boss. i'm the boss now, we'll dig melanie, fill a neck and dig male is not the type to be like. so mad talked to privately now wears his heart on his sleeve. his anger on his sleeve he can love you today. and if he started hating you tomorrow, he can pull the switch just like that. >> and mel becomes more and more resentful of being cast aside. and so that fueled this tension in that family to the point where it eventually exploded that explosion came in 2005, and though it may not have aired on reality tv, it was still >> inextricably linked to garbage >> raba goiter, which flows down this landfill, which dich

mal was a part owner of rod said that this was for environmental issues >> what did he want you to do? >> it alone? and i learned that it was operating in violation of the environmental laws. i had knowledge of that. ultimately, i decided i had a duty that i had to shut it down and then he made some accusations that really unleash the furies. dick mild, paul, the press conference and basically accused raba goya, which have selling borden commission seats within state government that will set a falling out with a son-in-law. the governor has a family out so your father-in-law, dick >> male, accused chris kelly of selling political favors for campaign contributions of 25 to $50,000 at a time tell me about where were you when you heard that he was leveling this accusation? >> i remember vividly it was early january of 2005 and this was the consequence of be shutting down his landfill. the very next day, he called a

press conference. it was clever enough to accuse chris kelly, not directly name, but that's me. i don't think he envisioned that it would turn into something that would ultimately land me in prison. but i know he did this to hurt me politically and it caused me problems with the fbi males allegations backed rod into a corner, giving the fbi room to prosecute his inner circle until in 2008, the fed secured a secret wiretap >> on the governor himself, feeling the squeeze rods started looking for some kind of escape route and then a golden opportunity landed right in his lap. >> at best, the moment change has come to america >> now that senator barack obama is president elect barack obama, samoa we'll have to take over a senate seat. >> this is the governor's decision it is not my decision. the criteria that i would have for my successor would be the same criteria that i'd have if i were a motive senator obama

becomes president obama. he resigns his senate seat according to the law here in illinois. you as the governor get to name his replacement. now, you're excited about this and you say on tape, i'd like to get the god of here and you're talking about options for yourself. is that i mean, i'd like to get gotta here you are sick of being governor. >> that's absolutely the things i was saying, of course, and i was looking at all kinds of options. >> so he attempted to trade obama's seat for a golden parachute he begins to be heavily courted by all sorts of people who would love to be that us senator. >> they saw something really valuable here, a very valuable barring ship that could elevate his power in some way or benefit them monetarily. >> and i said i wanted to get the f ada here. it's because those fbi the people and my prosecutors will all over me. and it's the sort of thing when that stuff's thrown around you, you know, that stuff swirling around you, right? and it's there, it's everywhere.

and it was just very clear to me that they were determined to get me no matter what, i guess one question i have this knowing that they were looking at you, why did you talk about this stuff that way? >> look, i had 2896 days in prison to ask myself 1,000 questions, including that. but you know what's the alternative? i have all my staff and lawyers. we all go to saunas and get naked and talk to each other son. he's got wires on them. >> no, it's the organ or you just don't say anything where you just say like this seat is very important and we want to make sure the best person gets it. and separately, i am thinking that i'd like to not be governor of illinois anymore. >> well, said. >> i don't make a habit of telling politicians how to avoid jail time. >> but here's the thing >> being more >> cautious could have gotten rod everything he wanted and kept him out of prison but caution is not really in rods dna >> i've got this thing and

i'm just not given up >> he'd known a taping, you can say that out loud. right? >> breaking news, the illinois governor charged with plotting to sell barack obama's former senate seat, illinois governor rod blagojevich's was arrested tuesday morning by federal authorities in charged with corruption. >> i do do you note a jana get you doubt why >> why? >> candidate john edwards cheated on his cancer-stricken wife, had a baby with his girlfriend, and then tried to pass it off as a campaign staffers kid. >> we're here to get your side of the story. did your intimate relationship with him begin that night? yes. >> how did you end up with a sex tape of john edwards and reopened tabloid trash is full allies. >> donna was believed he could outsmart anyone's on the

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absolutely. free to xdr hey, w to 369369. today vegas. >> this of sin city tomorrow at ten on cnn a, day after being arrested on corruption charges, illinois governor rod blagojevich's walked out of his house and >> headed back to work >> all in all rod blagojevich's was facing 24 charges connected to for specific events, the attempted sale of obama's senate seat withholding legislation that would benefit a children's hospital and race track in an attempt to get political contributions >> and the attempted >> extortion of a highway contractor i personally think he should at least step aside if not resigned. >> my husband is an honest man and i know that he's innocent. >> he thought that he had the moral high ground. >> do you think the cloud that hangs over use and attain your,

i don't believe there's any cloud that hangs over we're getting back to that. i think there's none of its sunshine hanging over me. >> he didn't show any of the humility or anything, you just can't stick your finger in the eye of the federal government. >> let me reassert to all of you wants more but i am not guilty of any criminal wrongdoing then i'm confident that at the end of the day, i will be properly. exonerate >> i represent a rod blagojevich's in two of his criminal trials. i mean, he wanted to fight his case. he believed he was innocent and he was working to that end to try and prove his innocence. anyone who believes that this was a selling of some senate seat? doesn't understand politics every single day. in politics that is what happens is this horse trading and if you really listen to this in context what you heard was talking with various people, getting annoyed, talking about nonsense. and then the end, nothing really that was ever

acted on later. >> rod blagojevich's lawyers would argue that what ron did >> specifically with the senate seat was no worse than when president eisenhower appointed earl warren as chief justice of the supreme court back in 1952, dwight eisenhower's about to win the nomination to become the republican president earl warren, the governor of california's withholding the delegation's votes. governor warren tells eisenhower, i'll deliver the delegation for you on one condition. i want to be the next chief justice of the supreme court icc, the great war hero shakes hands, says, you gotta deal he wins one year later, earl warren is the chief justice of the united states supreme court >> rod wanted a political appointment from obama. and for that, he was prepared to trade obama's old senate seat, which is actually legal. otherwise, eisenhower would have gone to jail and americans would not have liked ike do you see yourself as somebody who was just trying to function and perhaps an inherently corrupt but legal system and that

theoretically almost any politician could be snagged the way you were >> absolutely. >> of course i do. except i'm giving me higher marks because i was using it that money and their power gave me to fight an established system that served itself on the backs of the people. and when you do that, you a lot of people off. any want to get ready yet, but do you think that you're earth hear about it like more outspoken about it? well, >> i wasn't hiding any of it, but these because it's legal and that's how you govern abraham lincoln was able to get the 13th amendment passed in congress, which ratified the emancipation proclamation, freeing slaves. he had to make political deals with members of congress to get the votes to pass it. that's how you get things done. you're not comparing yourself to it, but i don't mean so please say that i'm not competing for the equation brockovich, a lot taller than me and i never did anything his greatest. but you're also not talking about the emancipation course. i'm not governor blagojevich's tried to sell the appointment to the senate seat vacated by president elect obama. the

conduct would make blinken rollover in his grave you're very critical of pat fitzgerald. >> he's an evil guys, are wicked guys as counsel and he deserves to get an kicking. and he's a big coward. anyway, go ahead. sorry. well, i think he would take issue with everything you just said, you know, he has a reputation for being acquire boy, for being you know, when upstanding moral person, he sees himself as i am trying to uphold some basic standards for our politicians. that's how he views governable goya, which has been arrested in the middle of what we can only describe as a political corruption, crime spree >> we had a political and public narrative that we had to overcome and when the entire potential jury pool believes that your client is guilty before they've even heard the evidence. you're going into the trial, like if it's a basketball game, you're losing 100 to nothing >> or it's like if you're a

governor and you're getting impeached 114 to one in the lone vote and rods favor his sister-in-law, deb mel down from office and eager to prove he was not a crook rod knew exactly where to plead his case >> please. welcome to the program. >> governor rod blagojevich >> you >> are a charming dude with the best that i hear. i'd ever >> i want this could real, that some challenges ahead, but i'm going to trust in the truth. and is it says in the bible, the truth shall set you free, ride, look away, but she just kept talking. >> oh, are you want to get on tv? come on. and i think he was able to warm himself a little bit with the public, better to be seen as a klutz, than a cruck. >> sure. everyone loves a good laugh, but over saturating the talk show circuit may have had unintended consequences as david letterman told rod when he appeared on the late show in 2009, the more you talked and the more you repeated your

innocence, the more i said to myself, oh, this guy's guilty >> so during the period from your impeachment to you're trial and you're sentencing for you did a lot of media appearances what was the strategy behind that >> my feeling was, look, i didn't do any of that stuff. and what does somebody do? it was being lied about. but you have a tremendous desire to get onto the highest mountain and yell out. i didn't do it when letterman said that the >> louder you yelled at the bohr and made him think you were guilty? yeah. >> i didn't convince him, but i think i convinced donald trump. that's fine. i got invite us every premise right >> i have great respect for your tenacity for the fact that you just don't give up. >> but rod you're fired >> what i saw over the course of rods career was a guy who started off as kind of charming rogue and a guy who really did give voice to concerns that people had to someone who became almost a parody of themselves and by. the time

that trial came around, he really was his own worst enemy >> court. >> he thought that the court of public opinion could save him but he had disturbed forces that decided it was around for you. >> don't hope the >> beds fell, just don't do it that night out on the ice. >> he saw something. >> i saw nothing. >> de either was so much charming man, you're ever going to meet, or he was your worst night. >> he was bad man. >> you've adopted and a kid and now they're trying to kill you. >> want people to pay for what they've done to have to dig, to get to the truth >> this is going to everybody las vegas grim. >> people for business for why do solutions? because t-mobile is helping our operations and experiences hundreds of thousands of ban would reliable 5g connectivity now's the time to accelerate your business

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70% or so of guilt.com today a verdict. >> today in a notorious case that federal prosecutors did not want to hear. rod blagojevich's was convicted today. and only one count >> when the jury was hung in all but one of the charges against boko, and without unanimous consent, the result was a mistrial on the remaining 23 charges the jury like a lot of people to this day, just could not agree on whether what he'd done was actually illegal >> in >> that first trial, the jury deadlocked on everything except for lying to the fbi, convicted of lying fbi. do they acknowledge that you lied to the fbi? no. no. >> i don't. i'll tell you about it was about how much of your associates that were fundraising for you, the degree to which you knew what they were doing, was the as i said, i didn't as a practice track fundraising. and who got

contracts? i didn't i didn't look into who got contracts. i wasn't interested in i 27,000 contributors. i wasn't tracking who gave me money, who got what >> the first trial was too confusing for the jury. and they had a lot of paper documents. it was a lot of witness testimony >> governor, for this to begin. i feel what the >> government did in the second trial is they paired down there their case, and they believe that everything was in the tapes and they needed to make this trial lot simpler. >> right. but you understand it's very important for me to make a lot of money i need the independent i need freedom. >> u was swearing allowed. >> the whole world pass me by and i'm stuck in a job as governor now and upset and not appreciative of the position that he had i got to catapult. i got a parachute add as many dead senate seat >> and i think that was more influential in the jury's decision than anything. it made him look bad.

>> breaking news right now, we have jury has reached a decision convicting blagojevich's on 17 counts of corruption wire fraud, bribery, attempted extortion, soliciting patient of a bribe, racketeering, conspiracy to commit bribery, and conspiracy to commit extortion >> rod blagojevich's was convicted on almost all counts and sentenced to 14 years >> adding, i obviously, a very disappointed in the outcome. i frankly am when did you realize oh i might actually be going to prison from the beginning. really. i knew i was a dead man. >> really. yeah, one because he has so much power, resources and, you know, it wasn't really surprised when i got 14 years. the justification to the judge was you treated this like a golden glove boxing match, but it shows corrupt liars are lucky. dueling was outlawed because i had a challenge them to adore rapists and murderers get so much less time. that's

why this system is so long and so broken. >> let me offer you an alternate theory. sure. >> my alternate theory is that the entire system of justice that we have in this country depends on prosecutors and police who are incentivized to get convictions period. what do you think of that? >> well, i think you're almost right i never took a pen enormous i did. i keep saying that because it's so important. i mean, i don't want people to think that i was some one of these corrupt politicians that was taken cash. >> but remember, even though he never actually got that envelope full of money, that was because the feds closed in before the senate deal was done. the offers being considered campaign contributions or a lucrative job in a non-profit. >> the fact of accepting them that would have been simply illegal, hence, the charge of conspiracy to commit bribery which he was definitely guilty of. >> rods argument is no cash changed hands. but prior to

that, there had been plenty of money changing hands. there's ample evidence these government positions, these government contracts, they were effectively for sale it does not matter if rod blagojevich's actually won the argument and got the money or the donations he was seeking. it's the ask if something goof sit up, but the burglary or the robberies interrupted it doesn't make it less of an intended burglary robbery. >> he had his day in court that 14 years was what the system gave him so you went to prison for almost eight years, 2896 days and let me tell you what gets you through prison when you have to face something like that, it's love and it's faith, love for my daughters and my wife, you know, when i was arrested within days, the vagus as makers had nine to one that she was leaving so in that sense, i've been so lucky and blessed after he was sent to

prison, padding for claimed his innocence, and she did try and go to any leader of that she could find to have him either pardoned or commuted and when all else failed, patty blagojevich's knew exactly who to appeal to next >> that night out on the ice. he saw something i saw nothing either with some most charming man you're ever going to meet, or he was your worst night? >> he was a bad man. >> you've adopt the kid now they're trying to kill you. >> want people to pay for what they've done >> have to dig to get to the truth >> this is going to bad everybody >> were you worried the wedding would be too much >> no. >> other destination. why do we just got by from her sisters had napped book. it's merited now, buck, my daughter, who gets right someplace more expensive. >> i

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the economy is simply not working for millions of hard working families. they're working harder than ever and they still can't make enough to get by to afford food and medicine to even keep a roof over their heads. we need to build more housing that's truly affordable. we need to address this terrible epidemic of homelessness. we need to invest in good paying jobs, union jobs and investments in our future. this, this is why i'm running for the us senate. i'm adam schiff and i approve this message. relief. absolutely free tax deal raw 369369. today >> i'm lauren fox on capitol hill and this is cnn >> after rod goes to prison, patty was essential in keeping

their life together more than anything else, maybe she got in donald trump's year. >> trump had a connection with the garbage because rod was on the apprentice and patty burgoyne, which was on fox news every day. >> you know, we know that president trump is a kind the man. and he's compassionate. he's always been kind to my family. >> and when you speak on fox news, you have a direct connection with donald trump >> today, the president sprung from prison. former illinois governor ron blagojevich's was convicted after attempting his own quid pro quo? >> yes. we have commuted the sentence of rod. i watched his life on television quote, i watched his life on television. yes. and cook. >> how did how did that happen? >> i think he just saw he would tell me he liked the fact that i was fighting back. remember him saying something like a forensic go through what you're going through and earn a corner. they can't even move and you're out there throwing punches i think he liked that

i'm so grateful to him. sometimes things happen in life or god intervenes in the most unbelievable ways. >> trump blagojevich's fox news. i'm not sure how much god played a role in any of this. when rod came home from prison after eight years, his daughters had grown up. how are your relationships with them? >> they're good. i'm i'm getting to know them. are family was broken for a long time the difficulties that i talked about with my father-in-law, those were heartbreaking because in spite of everything, i love him and he's been good to me in so many ways and it's been a tough road for my wife. our lives could have been so much simpler, so much better understandably ride looks back on the time away from his family with regret not for what he did, of course, but that he was sent to prison in the first place. but what else would you expect from rod? >> i am a political prisoner. i was put in prison for practicing your plot prisoner.

see nelson mandela was a political prison. political prisoners have no due process. i was thrown one in prison and spent nearly eight years in prison for practicing politics for seeking campaign contributions without a quid pro quo, you do have an obligation to at least admit what you did wrong and he refused to do that and you're creating a whole new alternate universe of facts. and that may be big in politics today, but it's still frankly, just >> a reporter asked you if you wanted to say sorry to the people of illinois and you said sorry for what? >> do you still feel that way? very much. so i've done a lot wrong criminal, none you and your defenders argue that the persecution, prosecution of you is about the criminalization of politics. in other words, there is horse trading that goes on in politics. you do me this favor. i'll do you guys favor? and that's all you were doing and that it's legal. but they made it out to be illegal. >> first of all, it's not illegal. you can argue whether

we should improve our laws. that's a valid thing. i would think there's honor womb to improve the fundraising laws but that's not illegal at all and it's a common practice. now, ultimately, after i've been in prison for four years, the appellate court reverses that big lie of the sale of the senate seat. and they said it's routine political log rolling and look, that's partially true. the court did vacate the conviction related to obama's senate seat, but they never said he did nothing wrong. the court said there was a jury instruction issue and they upheld the remaining 13 counts. >> so >> contrary to his claim, he has not been exonerated and for the love of elements, we can only hope that rides crimes are not routine if there is a big lie, it's that he's a victim, especially since every other charge was upheld, including the extortion of a children's hospital gandhi, he ain't this isn't some sort of mystery. gosh, i didn't know i had no

idea. it's so great. >> really. >> i think most of us have some gut sense of when we're beginning to get in trouble. >> i don't leave has ever done any reflection on right and wrong extorting a hospital? never occurred to him that that might harm the citizens that he was elected to protect he has no ability to look at anything but himself. that's it. let's it >> what's the worst thing that can be said about you? that's accurate in your view other than you were stupid to say that stuff share look, i've been accused of being a narcissist am i plead to a misdemeanor on that. okay >> i think my judgment of some people was way off. i think i should have been a lot more vigilant and see some of the warning signs. i knew they were aggressively out there raising money and i didn't slow it down because i wonder raised

the campaign money i could have been more vigilant on that in retrospect >> 00 close, but no cigar whether or not rod trusted the wrong people. he set them loose on illinois because they brought him them the most money. whether the rules on political fundraising are flimsy guardrails at best, you can still drive between the lines. it's arrives tail is a cautious generic camera grabbing over the top example of how bribery, extortion and graft easily sneak into our political system behind ambition and enormous ego and if politicians or the public feel the same way he does, then another rod blagojevich's is just around the corner >> anyone break a law, cross lander? a penny. okay. >> but i never said i wasn't >> at thank you very much. thank you very much. thank you very much. >> yeah. thanks to you. collegewide is your all right. i wish you the vast will see

you how it endwh