Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is praising President Donald Trump’s crime-fighting initiatives in Chicago, after recent figures indicate a precipitous drop in numerous major crime categories following the president’s decision to flood the city with increased federal law enforcement resources

“President Trump has dramatically decreased crime rates in the city,” Blagojevich said on Newsmax’s “Saturday Report,” citing a 35 percentdrop in shootings and a nearly 50 percent reduction in carjackings.

He noted that the reduction chiefly impacts black residents in the city, many of whom have been most affected by the city’s years-long violent crime crisis. Black Americans also make up the majority of residents in Chicago.

Blagojevich — who was pardoned by President Trump following a controversial conviction on charges that he attempted to sell one of the state’s open Senate seats after President Barack Obama was elected — also took aim at current Governor JB Pritzker, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and other prominent Democrats in Illinois. He accused them of succumbing to pressure from the “left-wing socialist communist bloc of the Democratic Party,” which mandates perpetual opposition to the president no matter what.

Pritzker in particular, he argued, is “unfit to be any kind of elected official,” for focusing largely on national issues ahead of an expected presidential campaign. He added that he would have thanked Trump, not condemned him, if he had offered federal help for Chicago during his time in office.

Blaojevich was impeached after being convicted of public corruption charges in 2011, for which he was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison. He served eight years of the steep sentence before it was commuted by President Donald Trump in 2020.

During a recent appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience, Blagojevich explained that he has never stopped swearing his innocence. He instead insists that he was framed by Democratic Party leadership in order to protect then-President Barack Obama.

According to Blagojevich, he was approached by a high-ranking Democratic Party labor ally to appoint top Obama ally Valerie Jarrett to the president’s vacant seat. He refused to do so, the former governor claims, but was framed in order to cover up the shady conduct committed by Obama’s team, for which he was ultimately convicted.

Blagojevich has been linked to a potential Senate bid to replace the retiring Dick Durbin, this time as a Republican, though he has yet to publicly announce a campaign.

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