blagojevich? >> well, wolf, it is good to be with you. this is president trump totally unleashed after he got out of the impeachment trial, and what we are seeing is president trump despite what he said in the campaign is now the ultimate swamp monster. he is using power of his office to help other people who were convicted of political corruption charges to help very wealthy and powerful people, and he is using justice department to reward his friends and punish his enemies. that is what banana republics do, and that is what we go around the world asking other countries not to do. and not to engage in that kind of the political corruption and cronyism, but that is what president trump is doing. he is again, abusing the powers of the office. >> do you expect the president to ultimately pardon roger stone and maybe some other associates? >> i think that is part of what is happening here, wolf. he is laying the groundwork and when it is coming to roger stone and others like michael flynn, it is a co

rod blagojevich is the pinnacle of corruption. then he pardons people here who are lower, maybe stone, manafort. >> lying to the fbi, obstruction. >> it will seem like well, it's sort of lesser included. >> but it's not. >> right, it's different because stone and manafort and flynn relate to him, relate to donald trump. all the things rod blagojevich did in illinois have nothing to do with donald trump. these other guys, i think they're going to be the next wave of pardons. >> what about how caitlan was saying how the a.g. was over at the white house for this or part of this, and the fact that just again, reminding people just a couple of days ago bill barr was on abc news saying yeah, you know, those tweets from the president not really nideal, something i have to contend with. now you have the president weighing in majorly. >> tweeting about the mueller prosecutors today. and he's referring to these prosecutors in the roger stone case. those are the mueller prosecutors he's referring to. as to the attorney general being at the w

napolitano: dear member who prosecuted rod blagojevich? fitzgerald. in who is his most celebrated person today jim comey. >> is certainly could have entered his mind. >> wow congratulations. how do hair get so white? it's been on the panel returns later, but first the constitution, once again under assault from lawmakers who want the ability just new bonner phone calls and e-mails without a warrant. so how can we stop them from extending this awful section 215 of the patriot act? west point graduate, notre dame graduate warren at davidson joins us next. napolitano: while we were all consumed by impeachment, piece of legislation was slowly and silently making its way through congress. it is a renewal of section 215 of the patriot act which authorizes the federal government to capture, without a warrant or records of all people in america held by third parties. do we really want the federal government meant to spy without warrants? think about it. after the constitution was ratified in 1789, it was amended to recognize the existence of natural rights an

. >>> the president granted clemency to some well convicted criminals including rod blagojevich. who might be spared next. >>> set in stone. roger stone sentencing will happen thursday as a judge tries to ignore president trump's angry tweets and the political furor surrounding the case. he could get a new trial any way. >>> up for debate, michael bloomberg is hours away from the first face off with his democratic poeopponents. the billionaire qualifying for the debate as a new poll shows he's gaining and bernie sanders is dominating. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." >>> tonight, president trump is declaring he's the nation's chief law enforcement officer while insisting he has confidence in his attorney general william barr. mr. trump spoke out around the controversy swirling around the justice department and his decision to grant clemency for a slew of high profile convicted criminals. he commuted the sentence of rod blagojevich and pardoned police commissioner among others. first, let's

the president announced that he is commuting the sentence of former illinois governor rod blagojevich who was a one-time star on his tv show "the celebrity apprentice." he plead guilty to trying to sell a open senate seat, as he put it on one moment. >> i have this thing, and it is [ bleep ] golden. i'm just not giving it up for nothing. >> president trump also pardonning former new york police chief bernard keric who was convicted of tax fraud, and allowing his office who wanted to do business with new york city to renovate his office and a gift that keric accepted and hid. this is two of the list of seven pardons and four commutations that the president announced today and what were the actions to benefit these two well connected powerful men who abused their position might mean when it comes to possible similar actions for the felonious trump aides such as paul manafort and michael flynn and roger stone. and now as kaitlan collins is reporting that he is making the moves just two days before his friend and confidant roger stone is to be sentenced. >> reporter: today, the president

napolitano: dear member who prosecuted rod blagojevich? fitzgerald. in who is his most celebrated person today jim comey. >> is certainly could have entered his mind. >> wow congratulations. how do hair get so white? it's been on the panel returns later, but first the constitution, once again under assault from lawmakers who want the ability just new bonner phone calls and e-mails without a warrant. so how can we stop them from extending this awful section 215 of the patriot act? west point graduate, notre dame graduate warren at davidson joins us next. oh, hi, samantha. you look more like a heather. do you ever get that? it's nice to finally meet you in person. you're pete nocchio? oh, the pic? that was actually a professional headshot. i'm sure that's it, yeah. i, uh, i think i've lost a few pounds recently too. i'm actually doing a juice cleanse. wait! you don't... (glass breaking) (gasp) ah! oh...! with geico, the savings keep on going. just like this sequel. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. now you can, with shipsticks.com!

when it comes to rod blagojevich, it's almost all democrats. the former governors fellow democrats from illinois, dick durb durbin, jesse jackson and others. that's the point the president maid, well, this guy was a democrat, that might be, but regardless of his party i can tell you just in talking to congressional republicans as this came out, they're not happy, and i talked to one senior congressional source on the republican side who said it just looks bad. and this is somebody who kind of has their pulse on the republicans on capitol hill. now, is there anything they can do? no, but it speaks to really the core and the heart of what republicans are now and have been battling for some time, which is the notion of swampiness, of corruption. i mean, it's already a dicey thing, not just for the president running for re-election, but more importantly for these hill republicans in the senate in particular, they're facing an uphill climb to keep control of the senate, and they don't think that this particular commutation helps. >> and another one,

jillian: former illinois governor rod blagojevich back home thanks to the president. >> the most profound and everlasting gratitude to donald trump. rob: the high profile is some leniency the president gave >> reporter: joey does a chair fool! >> reporter: neither does one viral date go where. a coffee date sending the internet into an uproar. rob: "fox and friends first" continues right now. ♪ must be a lady tonight ♪ must be a lady tonight ♪ rob: you can watch the debate. jillian: i am bad luck. rob: good morning. you are watching "fox and friends first," i am rob schmidt. jillian: let's get to this, sin city showdown, 6, 2020 contenders take the debate stage in las vegas. rob: that will take aim at michael bloomberg. jillian: griff jenkins joins us with highlights from the campaign trail. >> i'm staying at the hotel, i'm terrible at the casinos. i digress, they are not rolling out the welcome mat for michael bloomberg. bloomberg along with sanders, warren, buttigieg, klobuchar and biden. any doubt the knives were out for bloomberg, listen to elizabeth for net latest tweet. it is

the president even pointed to rod blagojevich's wife. >> we have commuted the sentence of rod blagojevich. he served eight years in jail. it's a long time. i watched his wife on television. i don't know him very well. i met him a couple times. he was on for a short while on "the apprentice" a while ago. many don't agree with me. he is a democratic. >> with me cofounder of front page live.com. carl, so go o thank you so much. >> thank you. >> let's take a look at what has become this platform of the news and many think is the platform for him. mostly on fox, there are guests like rudy guilliani, christopher rudy and one person pushed for bernie kerik and rupert murdoch, fox personality and other pardons. what do you make of this influence and how unprecedented it is. >> this could be a two-way street. >> this could be the list the president wanted publicized on fox news or people who went to fox news to get to the president. as you saw, the president said, i saw it on news, on television. it was a fox news interview that that happened. i suppose that's fair game. in the greater picture of

then dropping the big one, rod blagojevich. >> the release from prison of the former illinois governor was a long time coming, his supporters have been advocating for a pardon since president trump took office. in the end, he stopped short of a full pardon, instead commuting his sentence. >> he served eight years in ja jail, long time to go, many people disagree with the sentence, he's a democrat, not a republican. >> he was tried twice and convicted once on charges mostly stemming from his attempts to sell the senate seat once occupied by president obama. >> got this thing and it's [bleep] golden. >> he was said to be on defense but decided to go ahead with it. >> i met him a couple of times he was on the apprentice years ago, he seemed like a very nice person. >> he also pardon the former new york city police commissioner bernard kerrick, financier michael milken, and former san francisco 49ers owner eddie debartolo. >> i take my hat off to donald trump for what he did, like i said, it's all about being here for eddie today. >> on his way to the west coast, president trump also respo

take a listen. >> we have commuted the sentence of rod lavoie approach -- rod blagojevich. many people disagree with the sentencing. he is a democrat, not a republican. the same group. mike: what do you say to critics who say the president went too far? >> this is a common thing for presidents to commute sentences or pardon people. it is a common point of disagreement with the choices they make. president obama commuted the sentence of a terrorist and people had problems with that and people are upset about this. there is a question whether it is effective draining of the swamp to commute the sentence of someone like blagojevich even if you think the sentence was excessive. mike: your thoughts? >> i agree with molly. he has the to commute the sentence wherever he wents but if there's a definition of quid pro quo in the dictionary sitting next to a picture of rod blagojevich, the epitome of what a quid pro quo looks like but the president has the right to do this so he can do it but it does speak to the fact that he cannot run on wanting to drain the swamp when he is embolde

people's backs like he had mike milken's back and bernie karik's back and rod blagojevich. i think both stone and flynn are going home by the end of the year. >> the news continues when i hand it over to chris for "cuomo prime time." >> thank you, anderson. i am chris cuomo and welcome to "prime time." we are seeing right now in realtime what a president can do. he just named a head of national intelligence who is not a day of experience in the field. think about that. not in intelligence, not in national security, not in the military. he also pardoned political friends who are clearly corrupt. and he may do the same for roger stone. but we have a juror from that case who's here to set the record straight. what do you say? let's get after it. >>> a president who once agreed no one is above the law, now post impeachment says he is in control of all law. >> i'm actually, i guess, the chief law enforcement officer of the country. >> he has to guess? and guess what, he guessed wrong. the attorney general is our country's chief law enforcement officer. but you didn't hear bill b

in this tweet from last summer the president wrote "rod blagojevich, former governor of illinois, was sentenced to 14 years in prison. he has served seven years. many people have asked that i study the possibility of commuting his sentence in that it was a very severe one." white house staff is continuing

. >> rod, you're fired. >> that's former governor rod blagojevich back home after his release from prison. that's him with the mane of silver hair we're used to seeing dyed brown. >> i feel great. >> how are you? >> what do you say to trump? >> thank you. i'm profoundly grateful. >> the longtime grateful calling himself a trump-ocrat. jeremy diamond filed this report from california. >> reporter: good morning. president trump on tuesday issuing a series of high-profile pardons and commutations. the president once again wielding that pardon power that he has really relished using at a number of points during his presidency. this time to reward several political allies and their friends who have been lobbying the president, in some cases for years, to follow through with these actions. there were 11 total pardons and commutations that the president issued on tuesday. a few especially high-profile ones that include bernie carrick, former new york police department commissioner, political ally of the president's, as well as a longtime friend and associate of rudy giuliani's. the president's p

-- rod blagojevich. ♪ u.s. secretary of state mike pompeo has ended his trip to utafrica with warnings a business, government, and trade. in the f told an audience that foreign aid was not theolion to alleviating all the dirty. --lliating poverty. he also said countries should be aware of authoritarian regimes and what he called "empty promises." here is what he had to say about south africa. sec. pompeo: look at the failed policies ie, zimbaanzania, and right here in ethiopia. south africa is debating an amendment to permit the expropriation of private property without compensatn. that would be disastrous for that economy, and most importantly for the south african people. ro ♪ ros: im ros atkins here for "outside source." international criticism for the response of the coronavirus outbreak on diamond princess cruise ship, which has been docked in yokohama for more than two weeks. and to bring you some of the top stories from the bbc service, the.n. has warned fighting in northwest syria could escalate, putt

. >> rod, you're fired. >> that's former governor rod blagojevich back home after his release from prison. that's him with the mane of silver hair. we're used to seeing brown. >> i feel great. >> how are you? >> what do you say to trump? >> thank you. i'm profoundly grateful. >> the longtime grateful calling himself a trump-ocrat. jeremy diamond filed this report from california. >> reporter: good morning. president trump on tuesday issuing a series of high-profile pardons and commutations. the president once again wielding that pardon power that he has really relished using at a number of points during his presidency. this time to reward several political allies and their friends who have been lobbying the president, in some cases for years, to follow through with these actions. there were 11 total pardons and commutations that the president issued on tuesday. a few especially high-profile ones that include bernie carrick, former new york police department commissioner, political ally of the president's, as well as a longtime friend and associate of rudy giuliani's. the president's perso

we are waiting to see exactly when rod blagojevich walks out of prison a free man. get a live report from the colorado lockup next. give me your hand! i can save you... lots of money with liberty mutual! we customize your car insurance so you only pay for what you need! only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ our mission is to provide complete, balanced nutrition... for strength and energy! whoo-hoo! great-tasting ensure. with nine grams of protein and twenty-seven vitamins and minerals. ensure, for strength and energy. >> bill: updating the top story. president trump handing clemency decisions including commuting the prison sentence of ex-illinois governor rod blagojevich who was convicted for trying to sell president obama's former senate seat. alicia acuna is live at the president in littleton, colorado, waiting for the release. hello. >> hi, bill. we have reached out to the federal correctional institution in englewood to see if we can get any update on when this is all going to happen. we have not heard back from the

trump commuted the sentence of former illinois democratic governor rod blagojevich, a onetime contestant on "celebrity apprentice." he served eight years of a 14-year sentence after being convicted of corruption for straight-up trying to sell the u.s. senate seat from illinois vacated by barack obama. part of that effort was captured by fbi wiretaps. >> i've got this thing, and it's [ bleep ] golden. and i'm just not giving it up for [ bleep ] nothing. >> trump pardoned former new york city police commissioner bernie kerik, a close associate of his friend rudy giuliani. kerik had pleaded guilty to eight fell charges including tax fraud and lying to white house officials. and the man once known as the junk bond king, wall street financier michael milken has also been pardoned. he pleaded guilty in 1990 to securities fraud and conspiracy. today trump explained the reasons for these decisions. >> fraud, blagojevich, he served eight years in jail. that's a long time. bernie kerik, a man who had many recommendations from a lot of good people. we have mike milken, who's gone around and done an

they had rod blagojevich on wiretaps. they had tape on blagojevich on the phone trying to sell the senate seat. he couldn't have been more guilty, but donald trump, who was impeached for a phone call, doesn't believe politicians should ever get in trouble for anything they ever say on a telephone. >> he's been in jail for seven years over a phone call where nothing happens, but over a phone where nothing happened. over a phone call where -- which he shouldn't have said what he said, but it was braggadocio, you would say. i would think that there have been many politicians, i'm not one of them, but have said many worse things over telephones. >> did donald trump commute blagojevich's sentence so he could take actions for a democrat who he thought got too tough a sentence? is that what he's going to say when he pardons or commutes the sentence of roger stone? i've done it for a democrat, i'm just being fair. i don't like sentences that are too tough. in trump world there's no such thing as coincidence. this happened this we

blagojevich. the president commuted the sentence of the former illinois governor who was removed from office and convicted on corruption charges for trying to sell the u.s. senate seat vacated by barack obama. the president also wiped away criminal records for several other big names including michael milken, once hailed as the king of junk bonds the disgraced financier became the face of insider trading in the 1980s. the president also pardon former new york police commissioner bernard kerik. he served four years in prison for tax fraud and making false statements former san francisco 49ers owner eddie debartolo jr. also received a pardon for his role in a casino bribery scheme nbc's dan scheneman has more >> you guys from chicago >> we are. >> congratulations on getting out. >> reporter: former illinois governor rod blagojevich awarded his freedom after president trump commuted his sentence. >> president trump is the one who did this, and i'm -- like i said, profoundly grateful. my gratitude is

they had rod blagojevich on wiretaps. they had tape on blagojevich on the phone trying to sell the senate seat. he couldn't have been more guilty, but donald trump, who was impeached for a phone call, doesn't believe politicians should ever get in trouble for anything they ever say on a telephone. >> he's been in jail for seven years over a phone call where nothing happens, but over a phone where nothing happened. over a phone call where -- which he shouldn't have said what he said, but it was braggadocio, you would say. i would think that there have been many things said over telephones. >> did donald trump commute blagojevich's sentence so he could take actions for a democrat who he thought got too tough a sentence? is that what he's going to say when he pardons or commutes the sentence of roger stone? i've done it for a democrat, i'm just being fair. i don't like sentences that are too tough. in trump world there's no such thing as coincidence. this happened this week for a reason. donald trump gave out some pardons to

commuting the sentence of former governor rod blagojevich, a one-time "celebrity apprentice" con tes about. his wife had made repeated pleas on fox news. also on the president's list, bernard kerik. as the president declares today, he is the cleef law enforcement officer of the country. >>> the disaster at daytona. ryan newman flipping over, and tonight, news just in on his condition. >>> the alarming headline on the crow oronavirus tonight. the lead doctor in wuhan dies from the virus at just 51. here at home, retracing the steps of vacationers who had coronavirus here in the u.s. but who are now gone. >>> mayor bloomberg rising in the polls, now making the cut. he will be on the debate stage, as the other democratic candidates prepare to tame aim. >>> the storm system moving through the northeast as we're on the air tonight. and the state of emergency in the south. bracing for heavy downpours and rob marciano times this out. >>> harvey weinstein's fate now in the hands of the jury tonight. and possibly the first clues from those jurors. >>> we have breaking news tonight in the sear

and anderson cooper challenges rod blagojevich days after his sentence was commuted by president trump. >> i am a political prisoner, put in prison -- >> you're a political prisoner? nelson mandela was, they have no due process, are unjustly jailed. you had a jury convict you. ♪ ♪ wherever we want to go, autosave your way there with chase. chase. make more of what's yours. they can save you these. in fact, if you had a dollar for every time they said it, you'd have a lot of dollars. which makes it hard to believe, especially coming from a talking lizard. pip, pip, cheerio! look, all i, dennis quaid, know is that esurance is built to save you dollars without skimping on service. and when they save, you save. the only way to know how much is to get a quote. chances are you'll save time, paperwork, and yes, dollars. when insurance is affordable, it's surprisingly painless. when insur♪nce is affordable, that's a reason to switch to jackson hewitt. no one gets you a bigger refund or you get $100. yep, get your biggest refund or we pay you. guaranteed. and here's another reason to swit

today the president shed more light on why he freed rod blagojevich from prison. tweeting rod blagojevich served eight years in prison with many remaining. he paid a big price. another comey, and gang deal. at the white house, ktvu, fox 2 news. >>> coming up after two days of deliberations, still no verdict in the harvey weinstein trial. we'll tell you what the jury asked of the judge today. >> and police in the east bay asking the public for help after a woman was injured early this morning in hayward. i work hard and i want my money to work hard too. so i use my freedom unlimited card. even when i'm spending, i'm earning 1.5% cash back on everything i buy. earning on my favorite soup... got it. earning on that eclair. don't touch it. don't touch it yet. let me get the big one. nope. this one? nope. this one? no. let me get them all. i'm gonna get them all. it's just the basics. can you double bag this right here? earn 1.5% cash back on everything you buy with freedom unlimited. can you also tell me what it is? chase. make more of what's yours. try to win by atta

president trump is commuting the 14-year prison sentence of former illinois governor rod blagojevich, calling it "ridiculous." he was impeached and removed from office for corruption. he was convicted of trying to auction off the u.s. senate seat left vacant when barack obama won the presidency. contracting laws are being weighed to speed construction of a wall on the u.s.-mexico border. the move is expected to spark criticism that the trump administration is overstepping its authorities, but similar legal challenges in the past have failed. a viral outbreak that began in china has infected more than 73,000 people globally. the death toll is approaching 1900. one of those fatalities is a senior doctor at a hospital in wuhan, where the outbreak began. united nations secretary-general antonio guterres says the outbreak is " not out of control" but

jesse: the fence had rod blagojevich on tape and that's all she wrote. donald trump parted blago from his sons from 40 years to eat years served. >> i don't know him very well, i met him a couple of times, he was on for a short while on the apprentice years ago and seems a very nice person, i do not know him but he served eight years in jail with a long time to go and many people disagree with the sense, he's a democrat, not a republican. jesse: is pretty clear one of the main reasons hee pardoned hm because he was on celebrity apprentice. >> did you raise money or did you feel it was a conflict. >> people on the other handle this. jesse: joined me now the former governor of illinois, a free man, rod blagojevich. you obvious he paid a big price, you know what you did was wrong, you served your time in a crazy sentence to begin with but that's all in thery b past. did you ever talk to barack obama about the sentence eat, did he have any knowledge about what was going on or not. >> first of all yes a crazy sentence for crimes that are routine politics and

including former illinois governor, rod blagojevich. and nbc news is confirming word that the attorney general, william barr, considered stepping down because of the president's tweets about justice department investigations. we have a lot to cover this morning. let's start with nbc white house correspondent, peter alexander peter, good morning to you >> reporter: good morning to you. rod blagojevich was in prison for pay-to-play politics, the kind of corruption that president trump has vowed to end, with members of the president's own party in illinois urging him not to pardon blagojevich who's who of criminals, busted for corruption and financial crimes this morning, rod blagojevich is a free man the disgraced former governor of illinois, walking out of prison overnight, four years sooner than expected, after president trump signed off on a spree of pardons and commutations >> president trump is one who did this like i said, profoundly grateful if you're asking me what my party affiliation is, i'm a trumpocrat >> reporter: blagojevich

>>> 24 hours after being set free by president trump, former governor rod blagojevich in front of the cameras. what he's now declared after being freed. >>> just in tonight, after that horrific crash at the daytona 500, this image late today. ryan newman leaving the hospital with his two daughters. >>> the frightening and deadly plunge. the car right off the ferry with two women inside. what we've learned tonight. this happened right off south florida. the car sinking 50 feet. >>> bracing for temperatures going down. wind chills, minus 17 in minneapolis, minus 3 in chicago. new york city, boston bracing next. and amid the emergency already tonight, now dangerous rains expected from texas to the carolinas. rob times all of this out. >>> there is major news tonight in the case of the new york city college student murdered in the park. >>> the surveillance tonight showing two married police officers offduty, jumping into action, taking on a robber on their date night. >>> and the news from elton john tonight. >>> good evening and it's great to have you with us here on this wednesday nigh

two states that president trump won in 2016, is there any world in which commuting rod blagojevich's sentence helps him political politically? >> not in illinois. there are some democrats that had supported a reduction of a sentence, most notably, dick durbin, the number two democrat and senate leadership, but for the most part, democrats and republicans have been united in saying that here in this state where you have such a history of political corruption. when you have a man who was acaused of not only trying to sell barack obama's senate seat, but shaking down a children's hospital for political contributions, of trying to race down the state's horse racing for beneficial legislation. what symbol does that show? illinois, of course, heavily democratic. our corningal delegation is 13-5. when this surfaced last august, you had all of illinois's congressmen saying no, don't do this. >> will you expect or do you expect a sharply worded editorial from -- the editorial board tomorrow? >> they do their own thing, and i'll let them do that. here in these early stages, it is surprising af

disgraced former illinois governor rod blagojevich freed from prison tuesday night after the president commuted his sentence. one of 11 people granted clemency by president trump who campaigned on a promise to drain the swamp. it includes a close friend of rudy giuliani, bernard kerik who was proposed for homeland security secretary before he pleaded guilty to tax fraud and making false statement served t before being released in 2013. joining me now, peter baker, chief white house correspondent for the "new york times" and jonathan lemire. peter baker, first to you. bernard kerik, such close connections, he was even in business with rudy giuliani in recent years. let's talk about that and how he gets to the president and why he got to the president for this pardon. >> right, i think that's one of the things you see is the commonality of most of these recipients yesterday is they had a connection to the president, one way or the other, they had an in. and the in for bernard kerik was rudy giuliani. rudy giuliani is also the one who got him appointed or nominated at one point to prosecu

i've got to start practicing again. >> trace: rod blagojevich, good of you to join us. bernie sanders is running away with the lead in a new national poll in joe biden hopes the voters of nevada will help him mount an early comeback in this democratic contest. his deputy campaign manager will join me exclusively from the site of tonight's debate, next. (whistling) (whistling) saturpain happens. aleve it. aleve is proven stronger and longer on pain than tylenol. when pain happens, aleve it. all day strong. the better question would be where do i not listen to it. while i'm eating my breakfast... on the edges of cliffs... on a ski lift... everywhere. ♪ download audible and start listening today. ♪ >> trace: democratic presidential contenders gearing up for a high-stakes debate in the better end of this weekends caucuses. bernie sanders has surged to a 16-point advantage over front runner joe biden in a new national poll. if joining me now his deputy campaign manager and communications director for joe biden, good of you to join us. you look at this paul and joe biden

blagojevich talk about racism in the justice system. and he has not been stop and frisked either. but this is a preview of the second term of donald trump, and he is feeling like he has unchecked power and didn't he that he is the top law enforcement person of the country and he is the chosen one, and he has decided that if they are not going to stop me, then i am pushing forward with everything that i want to do, and whether i am going to, you know, pardon the people i want to pardon and you can't do anything about it. and he is relishing saying that of course, i can do this, and i can do whatever i want to remind us that i'm in charge, and i have the power and there is nothing that you can do about it. >> and the lawyers for julian assange say that he could have been pardon and who knows maybe he will, and dana rohrabacher offered him a pardon if he would say that russia was not involved in the 2016 dnc email hack and the white house is calling it a total law, but it is another possible pardon, and the pardons don't only come in febru

former illinois governor rod blagojevich is now a free man. he walked out of prison after the president commuted his 14-year prison sentence for trying to sell the senate seat vacated by president obama. >> i'm fighting against a corrupt criminal justice system that often prosecutes people who did nothing wrong. show no mercy. and who are in positions that have no accountability. >> he served eight years in jail. it's a long time. and i watched his wife on television. i don't know him very well. i met him a couple of times. he was on for a short while on "the apprentice" years ago. seemed like a very nice person. >> former san francisco 49ers owner eddie debartolo jr. was among those who received a full pardon for his conviction in a gambling fraud scandal. president trump tweeted his congratulations in a collage of photos showing debartolo at the white house with his family and several nfl greats, including jerry rice and jim brown. >>> breaking overnight, sources say attorney general barr is considering resigning over president trump's tweet

of rod blagojevich. he searched eight years in jail. it's a long time. i watched his wife on television. i don't know him very well. i've met him a couple times. he was on a short while "the apprentice." seems like a very nice person. i don't know him. he served eight years in jail. he's a democrat, he's not a republican. it was a prosecution by the same people, comey, fitzpatrick, the same group. very far from his children. they're growing older. they're going to high school now and they rarely get to see their father outside of an orange uniform. i saw that and i did commute his sentence. so he'll be able to go back home with his family after serving eight years in jail. that i my opinion. and in the opinion of many others. >> the trump also pardoned former new york city bernard kerik, a close associate of rudy giuliani. kerik pleaded guilty to eight felony charges including tax fraud and lying to u.s. officials. and the junk bond king michael milken was also pardoned. milken pleaded in 1990 to conspir

i mentioned rod blagojevich. let's listen to this. this is something rod blagojevich brought up. >> got -- i'm a trumpocrat? >> if i had the ability to vote, i would have voted for him. >> illinois does allow blagojevich to vote now that he's out of prison, but a trumpocrat. is that a new one for merriam webst webster? >> i think -- >> what is that? >> nothing surprises me anymore, but i think we'll see a lot of crossover republicans voting for democrats if the democrats nominate a moderate like i've hoped they'll do. i think we also have to get ready for "dancing with the stars" pardoned criminals. >>> three days from now, the nevada caucus is happening, and the clear leader in the polls is senator bernie sanders. he says he doesn't plan to release any more medical records despite his promises to do so prior to his heart attack. >>> also, pete buttigieg fires back at rush limbaugh for attacking his sexuality, but hear what he had to say about family values in a cnn town hall. they get that no two people are alike and customize your c

former illinois governor rod blagojevich is no longer in federal custody and his family is preparing a big welcome home reception for him in chicago. we are examining trump justice as the president continues to talk tough against career doj officials while admitting his approach makes the job that much harder for his own team, like attorney general barr. plus, the president wonders aloud whether a democratic senator broke the law by meeting with the iranian foreign minister over the weekend. mollie hemingway first broke the story a day ahead of senator chris murphy's admission. she is here with analysis on this breaking story tonight. hello and welcome to "fox news @ night," on mike emanuel, info shannon bream. lets go straight to chief breaking news correspondent trace gallagher on what is happening between the attorney general and the president. good evening, trace. >> good evening, mike. more on that breaking news, multiple reports that attorney general bill barr has told people close to the press and both and outside the white house that he is considering quitting if the presiden

. >>> the former governor of illinois rod blagojevich is out of federal prison. he was released from a facility in colorado and returned home speaking with a group of supporters outside of his home this morning. >> headis say thank you to someone who gives you the freedom he didn't have to do this. he is a republican president and i was a democratic governor and doing this does nothing to help his politics. >> rod blagojevich served eight years of a 14 year sentence on corruption charges . president trump granted pardons to 11 people including michael milken, eddie debartolo, jr., and commissioner bernard kerik which were convicted on fraud and corruption charges. president trump did not say if you would pardon roger stone who is scheduled to be sentenced tomorrow. >>> coming up on kpix 5 news at 12:00, a professional snowboarder jumps into action to save people from an avalanche and it is caught on camera. >>> charity is one click away and how technology is making it easier than ever for people to give back. >>> we are in the 50s and the 60s with a beautiful liv

one of those, former illinois governor rod blagojevich, is back home this morning. want to go back to cecilia vega at the white house with more on that, good morning, cecilia. >> reporter: george, good morning. again. president trump is calling himself the country's chief law enforcement officer and many of these pardons went to high-profile white collar criminals who have ties to the president's inner circle and who have made big donations to his campaigns. overnight disgraced former illinois governor rod blagojevich released from federal prison in colorado. >> hello. nice seeing you guys. >> reporter: cameras catching up to him before he boarded a flight back home. >> you had no inkling at all that this was going to happen? >> no, i did not. >> you had no warning? >> no warning, no. >> reporter: part of president trump's pardon spree that granted clemency to a who's who of big name white collar criminals. >> i'll do anything legal and ethical and honest. >> of course. ♪ money money money >> reporter: the one-time "apprentice" contestant served eight of his 14-ye

trump commuted the sentence of former democratic illinois rod blagojevich, a onetime sentence on celebrity apprentice. he served eight years of a 14-year sentence after being convicted of corruption for straight-up trying to sell the u.s. senate seat from illinois vacated by barack obama. part of that effort was captured by fbi wiretaps. >> i've got this thing, and it's [ bleep ] golden. and i'm just not giving it up for [ bleep ] nothing. >> trump pardoned former new york city police commissioner bernie kerik, a close associate of his friend rudy giuliani. kerik had pleaded guilty to eight fell charges including tax fraud and lying to white house officials. and the man once known as the junk bond king, wall street financier michael milken has also been pardoned. he pleaded guilty in 1990 to securities fraud and conspiracy. today trump explained the reasons for these decisions. >> fraud, blagojevich, he served eight years in jail. that's a long time. bernie kerik, a man who had many recommendations from a lot of good people. we have mike milken, who's gone around and done an incredible job

swamp that's what we're doing. >> reporter: today tweeting, rod blagojevich did not sell the senate seat true, but he was convicted of trying to profit off the seat barack obama vacated >> i've got this thing. and it's [ bleep ] golden and i'm just not giving it up for [ bleep ] nothing. >> reporter: also tonight, lawyers for wikileaks founder julian assange are claiming in court that a now former republican congressman in 2017 offered assange a pardon behalf of the president. if assange agreed to say russia was not involved in leaking democratic emails during the 2016 election nbc news has not obtained the lawyer's full statement tonight, that former republican congressman and the white house both disputing assange's lawyer's claims, the white house calling it a complete fabrication and a total lie. and late tonight, president trump is expected to name richard grenell, the ambassador to germany, as his acting director of national intelligence grenell is a long time political operative and a fierce ally of the president who is viewed as divisive, facing heavy criticism for his outspokenn

jesse: former illinois democratic governor rod blagojevich for trying to sell barack obama peace. [inaudible] jesse: the feds have him on tape and after that that was all she wrote. donald trump commuting his sense to eight serve. >> rod blagojevich, i don't know him very well i've known him for a short while at the apprentice a few years ago he seems a nice person but i do not know him but he served eight years in jail, a long time to go and many people disagree with the sentencing he's a democratic not a republican. jesse: one of the main reasons he pardoned him because he was on celebrity apprentice. >> did you raise money or was it conflict. >> when i get money is because i'm soliciting. >> joining me the former governor of illinois, freeman rod blagojevich. you obviously paid a big price, you know what you did is wrong, you surgery crime, crazy sense to begin with that's all in the past. did you ever talk to barack obama, did he have any knowledge about what was going on or not? >> first of all, a crazy sentence for things that are not crimes and routine politics in that part

that what rod blagojevich is calling himself as his sentence was commuted by the president. stand by to hear his over the top thank you. >>> we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around tr world. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room.." vrjts we' >>> we're getting a new window into trump's brazen meddling. a source tells cnn that william barr has told people he's considered resigning over the president's interference, particularly, his tweets. mr. trump rubbing salt in the wound today when he retweeted call for barr to clean his, his word, clean house over at the justice department. also tonight, a lawyer for julian assange has told a court that the wikileaks founder was offered a presidential pardon by a trump ally. the lawyer says there was a clear condition that assange would have to claim russia was not involved in the dnc hack. i'll get reaction from senate judiciary committee member richard bloomthal. what are you learning about the tensions between the president and his attorney general? >> reporter: i just talked to a white house official

we go to break, former democratic governor of illinois, rod blagojevich thanks president trump. >> we want to express our appreciation to president trump. how do you thank someone who gave you back the freedom stolen to you. from a republican president. i was a democratic governor. doing this does nothing to help his politics. he turned an injustice into a justice. such such hi, i'm jonathan, a manager here at colonial penn life insurance company. and with coverage options starting at just $9.95 a month, you can get a whole life insurance plan to help close that gap with a benefit check paid directly to your beneficiary. if you're between age 50 and 85, coverage options start at just $9.95 a month. and the rate is locked in. and it comes with two lifetime guarantees. one, your coverage can never be cancelled, and two, your rate can never go up. call for free information and you'll also get this beneficiary planner free just for calling. use it to record important information and helpful direction for your loved ones. so don't wait, call now. (announcer) and when you call right now, yo

donald trump commuting his sense to eight serve. >> rod blagojevich, i don't know him very well i've known him for a short while at the apprentice a few years ago he seems a nice person but i do not know him but he served eight years in jail, a long time to go and many people disagree with the sentencing he's a democratic not a republican. jesse: one of the main reasons he pardoned him because he was on celebrity apprentice. >> did you raise money or was it conflict. >> when i get money is because i'm soliciting. >> joining me the former governor of illinois, freeman rod blagojevich. you obviously paid a big price, you know what you did is wrong, you surgery crime, crazy sense to begin with that's all in the past. did you ever talk to barack obama, did he have any knowledge about what was going on or not? >> first of all, a crazy sentence for things that are not crimes and routine politics in that particular charge was reversed by the public court and they rightfully said it was routine political law, horsetrading. president obama began the whole conversation because he sent someone

. >>> president trump also commuted the sentence of former illinois governor rod blagojevich who was convicted of political corruption. he also are pardoned michael milken and former nypd commissioner bernard kerik who was extensioned for tax fraud. all pardoned by the president. the constitution says the beneficiary of a pardon needs to accept the pardon. in a ruling, the supreme court said that a pardon carries an imputation of guilt, and acceptance of a pardon is confession to such guilt. alexander hamilton once said it provides checks and balances to the judiciary system. there has to be an out somewhere in the system. >>> still ahead, the trifecta of inconvenienter tos, interest rates and a global illness and how it seems to be adding up. >>> plus, coming hole. the bay area is about to see the aids quilt like it hasn't been seen in decades. >>> it's an absolutely beautiful day out while the middle-class continues to struggle. that's what happens when billionaires are able to control the political system. our campaign is funded by the working people of this country, and those are

. >>> also new overnight, rod blagojevich walks free. >> i made a whole bunch of mistakes. >> the disgraced former governor serving time for corruption gets his sentence commuted by president trump. what he plans to do now. >>> developing overnight, a car plunges off a ferry in florida. divers race into the water trying to save two women trapped inside. >>> plus, the new battle royale. what queen elizabeth is now expected to tell harry and meghan. >>> the new trend at department stores. secondhand clothes. how customers are cashing in. >>> and from the shocking sticker price for these fancy oreo cookies to the date night these off-duty cops will never forget to a special music milestone. ♪ take on me >> all the trending stories for your wednesday morning. ♪ take me on ♪ take on me . >>> good wednesday morning, everyone. thank you for joining us. we begin with that breaking news overnight about attorney general william barr. >> yes, sources say barr discussed possibly resigning if president trump continues to tweet about the justice department's criminal investigations. >> all of this

president trump says he is commuting the prison sentence of rod blagojevich, freeing the former illinois governor and "apprentice" contestant from federal prison. blagojevich was convicted inbi and the president isn't stopping there. he's also pardoning bernard kerik, whose spectacular fall from new york city police commissioner and cabinet nominee ended in prison time for tax fraud and other crimes. all in all, the president issued four commutations and seven pardons, including one for 1980's junk bond king michael milken. weijia jiang reports tonight from the white house. >> rod, you're fired. >> reporter: former illinois governor rod blagojevich lost "celebrity apprentice" but won his freedom back today when president trump commuted his 14-year prison sentence. >> it was a tremendously powerful, ridiculous sentence in my opinion. >> reporter: the president noted he had seen blagojevich's wife argue for his release on fox ound guilty of trying to sell an appointment to barack obama's senate seat after he became president. blagojevich bragged about it in a notorious wiretapped conversat

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