Patrick Fitzgerald (DOJ)
Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) says prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald preventing him from doing “a lot of good for a lot of people” by arresting him last December, The Associated Press reported. Blagojevich makes the observation in his upcoming book, “The Governor,” The AP says.
Fitzgerald, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, described the Illinois governor as on as a “political crime spree” in a news conference last year. Blagojevich was charged with bribery and fraud in an alleged pay-to-play conspiracy.
“The Governor” will be released by Phoenix Books on Sept. 8. ”Mr. Fitzgerald didn’t stop a crime spree. He stopped me from doing a lot of good for a lot of people,” Blagojevich writes, The Huffington Post reported.
“There’s nothing wrong with America,” Blagojevich also wrote. “What is wrong is what this prosecutor has done. He’s wrong. His actions are undermining and threatening the rights we Americans expect and so often take for granted. It is not America that is wrong. His arrest, his press conference, and his false accusations are what’s wrong.” Read the NBC article here.
Fitzgerald’s office declined to comment.
Blagojevich is awaiting trial on charges he demanded campaign contributions in exchange for official actions. In June his wife, Patti, appeared on a reality television show and blasted Fitzgerald, saying, “They squeeze people to say things that aren’t true.”
