Blagojevich Full Interview — Transcript

Full transcript

1. 0:00uh your attorneys have said they're not
2. 0:02participating in the impeachment uh
3. 0:04procedure is that something you approved
4. 0:06of and are you going to be there well I
5. 0:09uh I have a responsibility as the
6. 0:12governor of Illinois who was elected
7. 0:13twice by the people of Illinois to uh
8. 0:15think Beyond just me because this issue
9. 0:18is much larger than just me in many ways
10. 0:20I'm immaterial what's really at stake
11. 0:22here is whether or not A legislature can
12. 0:24undo the uh choice of the people who've
13. 0:28elected a governor and then move that
14. 0:30Governor from office without giving that
15. 0:32Governor a chance to fundamental due
16. 0:36process with something as basic and as
17. 0:38simple as the right to call a witness so
18. 0:40you can confront those who have said
19. 0:42things about you that aren't true and if
20. 0:44I can't call witnesses like Rah manual
21. 0:46President Obama's Chief of Staff who has
22. 0:49said that in his contacts with me on the
23. 0:51issue of the senate seat there was
24. 0:52nothing inappropriate if I can't call
25. 0:54witnesses like Valerie Jarrett who's a
26. 0:56top staffer for President Obama who has
27. 0:58said the same in interviews with the FBI
28. 1:00or Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr and a
29. 1:02whole series of congressmen and US
30. 1:04senators and others then upon who
31. 1:07statement of Satan's and testimony
32. 1:10you're charged with at least mention the
33. 1:12criminal complaint that's correct if I
34. 1:14can't have a chance to be able to refute
35. 1:15those allegations by bringing Witnesses
36. 1:17like that in then the whole thing is a
37. 1:19farce uh it's pre-arranged and it's
38. 1:21designed really to get rid of me so they
39. 1:23can raise taxes on people the hidden
40. 1:25story behind this rush to judgment by
41. 1:27the legislature is get me out of the way
42. 1:29way so Pat Quinn and the legislature can
43. 1:32sock it to the taxpayers they've been
44. 1:33trying to do this for six years I've
45. 1:35stood in the way of an income tax
46. 1:36increase and there's already a bill
47. 1:37floating through the legislature that
48. 1:39wants to raise the sales tax on gas by 8
49. 1:40cents a gallon they want to raise taxes
50. 1:42on people if that uh is their motivation
51. 1:45they ought to say what it is but at the
52. 1:46end of the day to abrogate the
53. 1:48Constitution to deny due process to any
54. 1:51citizen however high or low that citizen
55. 1:53might be and do a rush to judgment not
56. 1:55give me a chance to have witnesses is
57. 1:57wrong and I'm not going to be a party to
58. 1:59something like that and whatever the
59. 2:00consequences are to me I'll face those
60. 2:02because the larger issue at stake is the
61. 2:04fundamental rights of citizens in our
62. 2:06country so you're not going to be there
63. 2:07on Monday your attorneys are not going
64. 2:08to be down there on Monday and then the
65. 2:10automatic plea of not guilty according
66. 2:11to the rules that's right now we'd love
67. 2:14to work with them and have rules fair so
68. 2:15we can aggressively show that I've done
69. 2:18nothing wrong and have done almost
70. 2:19everything right I'd love to be able to
71. 2:21bring Witnesses in I'd like to have the
72. 2:23governor of Wisconson or the governor of
73. 2:24Kansas or the governor of Vermont or
74. 2:26Senator McCain or Senator Kennedy to
75. 2:27come in and talk about how they work
76. 2:29with me to go to Canada to get uh cheap
77. 2:32medicine for our senior citizens so they
78. 2:34can afford their groceries and and pay
79. 2:36their medical bills um I'd like to have
80. 2:38an opportunity to bring in as I said
81. 2:40those high- ranking uh government
82. 2:42officials who I talk to about the senate
83. 2:43seat but unless and until they give me a
84. 2:45chance to bring a witness in to defend
85. 2:47myself uh it would be wrong for me to uh
86. 2:51um participate in a farce like that that
87. 2:53undermines the Constitution and
88. 2:55undermines what it would be like for
89. 2:57future Governors chosen by the people
90. 2:59that to deal with a legislative process
91. 3:01think about what's going to happen to
92. 3:02the next Governor when he or she might
93. 3:04take office in this case he he he'll be
94. 3:06so afraid of taking on the legislature
95. 3:09to stand in the way of raising taxes or
96. 3:11fighting to provide health care for
97. 3:12children as I've done because he's
98. 3:13afraid the legislature can do what
99. 3:15they're going to to him what they're
100. 3:16about to try to do to me and their
101. 3:18contention that they can't call these
102. 3:20Witnesses because the US attorney has
103. 3:22asked them not to and the criminal
104. 3:23process is more important how do you
105. 3:25respond to that it's very simple then
106. 3:27take the criminal allegations out allow
107. 3:29the us attorney to prosecute that case
108. 3:31in a court of law I can't wait to have
109. 3:33my day in court to prove my innocence uh
110. 3:35take that out and then try impeach me on
111. 3:38providing cheaper prescription drugs for
112. 3:40seniors remove me from office for
113. 3:42providing Health Care to poor families
114. 3:44who the Bush Administration took Health
115. 3:46Care away from removed me from office
116. 3:48because I went and was able to get flu
117. 3:51vaccines to help the elderly and uh sick
118. 3:54infants who were going to die from what
119. 3:55was then we were told in 2005 the worst
120. 3:58flu epidemic we've seen in years impeach
121. 4:00me on those things if you think those
122. 4:01are impeachable offenses but don't
123. 4:03charge me with criminala uh allegations
124. 4:06and not allow me to bring Witnesses in
125. 4:08who will show that I didn't violate any
126. 4:09criminal laws if that's the case allow
127. 4:11the US attorney who appropriately has a
128. 4:13case going in the appropriate Forum let
129. 4:16that case play out and let's have a fair
130. 4:18uh impeachment trial in the Senate the
131. 4:20house leadership has told me that they
132. 4:22couldn't do that because they couldn't
133. 4:25uh try to impeach you on the grounds of
134. 4:27all those past things until the crial
135. 4:29complaint because there wasn't enough to
136. 4:31do it is there an irony there and that's
137. 4:34rather the point that they waited until
138. 4:36a criminal complaint came down and then
139. 4:39rule 15f says we're not going to allow
140. 4:41you to challenge any of those that's
141. 4:43exactly the governor's Point here we're
142. 4:45going to say you did these things we're
143. 4:47not going to bring Witnesses in to tell
144. 4:49you what you did and you can't call
145. 4:50witnesses to say you didn't do those
146. 4:52things that's rather the point here what
147. 4:54they're trying to do is go through the
148. 4:55back door what they couldn't get in
149. 4:57through the front I understand I
150. 4:59understand that on a personal note how
151. 5:01is your family dealing with all this I
152. 5:02mean Patty reportedly lost her job your
153. 5:05daughters still have to go to school how
154. 5:07are you dealing with this well it's a
155. 5:09very trying time for us personally and
156. 5:12uh for our children our our older
157. 5:15daughter our 12-year-old who's more
158. 5:16aware of this than our 5-year-old of
159. 5:18course it's it's uh it's probably the
160. 5:20worst thing that that we've had to deal
161. 5:22with since we've had children other than
162. 5:23the loss of of uh Patty's mom and and
163. 5:27and uh and my mom um but we're working
164. 5:30through it and you know I I have a deep
165. 5:33faith and a deep belief that God has a
166. 5:34purpose for all things and for all of us
167. 5:36and I just believe that when it all
168. 5:37shakes out and the truth comes out I
169. 5:39think people are going to appreciate
170. 5:41what I've done for them how I fought for
171. 5:42them how I took on powerful forces to
172. 5:44protect them from the special interests
173. 5:46who want to raise their taxes and uh and
174. 5:49prevent those same families from having
175. 5:51opportunities that these lawmakers give
176. 5:53themselves like Comprehensive Health
177. 5:55Care and other sorts of things and I
178. 5:57think again I just deeply believe in the
179. 5:59truth and at some point that'll come out
180. 6:02and uh we'll work together as a family
181. 6:04and we'll get through it and uh I'm
182. 6:05blessed to have a wonderful beautiful
183. 6:08wife who's loving and honest and a great
184. 6:10employee and unfortunately uh her
185. 6:12employer made a decision understanding
186. 6:15what some of their factors might be um
187. 6:17but we'll get through does that ever
188. 6:18explain to you or to her
189. 6:20and exactly why that
190. 6:23happened I don't at this time I don't
191. 6:25think I think she should probably talk
192. 6:27to you about that if she want have you
193. 6:28ever have you and and Sam or any the
194. 6:31others given any consideration to
195. 6:33stepping aside temporarily until this is
196. 6:35cleared up if not outright resigning
197. 6:37spare your family at this time we have
198. 6:40had no discussions regarding that and I
199. 6:42don't think the governor needs to answer
200. 6:44answer those questions he has said from
201. 6:45the beginning you can always tell me if
202. 6:47I'm wrong go he's going to fight fight
203. 6:49fight because he knows he has done
204. 6:50nothing criminal he's not done anything
205. 6:52wrong and that is the position in which
206. 6:54R well let me say this too Jay and thank
207. 6:56and appreciate uh Sam's comments but
208. 6:59there's a again there's a hire principal
209. 7:01here and I'm just a vehicle in this
210. 7:03higher principal again put me aside
211. 7:05whether I'm the governor or not whether
212. 7:07I stay in or they throw me out it's
213. 7:09whether or not A legislature can have an
214. 7:12illegal farce impeachment process to
215. 7:14throw a government out by their own
216. 7:16admission they say that they couldn't
217. 7:18sustain an impeachment because of
218. 7:20criminal charges at the same time
219. 7:22they're making allegations and they
220. 7:24won't allow me to bring Witnesses in
221. 7:25like Rah Emanuel the President's chief
222. 7:27of staff and a lot of other high ranking
223. 7:28people who will show there was nothing
224. 7:30inappropriate so in other words by their
225. 7:32own admission they're saying that this
226. 7:34impeachment is a joke and it's a farce
227. 7:36and again the consequences to the people
228. 7:38of Illinois who've chosen me twice the
229. 7:41consequences to Future Governors the
230. 7:43consequences to the right of Voters to
231. 7:45choose their elected officials and not
232. 7:47have them undermined by legislators most
233. 7:49of whom who are faceless and nameless
234. 7:51and the people don't know who they are
235. 7:53and they go away to far away state
236. 7:54capitals and they're surrounded by all
237. 7:56those special interests and they do the
238. 7:58bidding of the special interest on the
239. 7:59backs of the people that's the big
240. 8:01principle that's at stake here and if
241. 8:03I'm a soldier who falls fighting for
242. 8:05that principle democracy the right of
243. 8:07the citizens to choose their leader and
244. 8:09a right to do process and the
245. 8:10fundamental right to call witnesses
246. 8:12defend yourself when someone accuses you
247. 8:13falsely of something then in some
248. 8:15respects there's a certain honor to that
249. 8:17and I'm prepared to pay the price