YT YouTube2Text

YouTube2Text → Transcripts → [RAW] Rod Blagojevich Press Conference After Trump Pardon | News Magazine Chicago

[RAW] Rod Blagojevich Press Conference After Trump Pardon | News Magazine Chicago — Transcript

by News Magazine Chicago · 2,970 words · 420 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

Open in transcriber Summarize with AI Download SRT/VTT

Full transcript

0:00so this guy's can tell this guy gotta
0:02see right here
0:07[Applause]
0:12which I
0:25[Music]
1:01Hey he needs one step back there so move
1:04it just a little bit just above two
1:06steps mark just 10 steps
1:08just weeks leg up right there right
1:09there right there girls to stick
1:26[Music]
1:28you know champion senator again I'm just
1:49I'm right here I got you step back step
1:56back a little bit step back guys we've
1:58straight right back let's stay right
1:59here give him some room guys step back
2:03at the Senate another senator speak
2:04that's a senator senator speak senator
2:11when a long long journey that's right
2:13I'm bruised and I'm battered I'm bloody
2:16it's been a long time since I've shaved
2:18with a normal razor and takes a little
2:22practice I'm sorry about that I got to
2:24keep dabbing the last change in the
2:34nearly eight years that we've been here
2:36let me just say a couple of things first
2:38of all the obvious I want to bake and
2:40then I know I speak for Patty and Amy
2:42and Annie and obviously for me we want
2:45to express our most profound and
2:47everlasting gratitude to President Trump
2:49how do you properly thank someone who's
2:51given you back the freedom that was
2:52stolen from you he didn't have to do
2:55this he's a Republican president I was a
2:58Democratic governor trouble cracks suing
3:00this there's nothing to help his
3:01politics President Trump is a man who is
3:05tough and outspoken but he also has a
3:07kind heart and this is an act of
3:10kindness and I also believe it's the
3:12beginning of the process to to actually
3:15turn it injustice into a justice
3:21sorry about this blood all these years
3:24away I never stop reminding myself of
3:28the words from a poem it's called the
3:31gate of the year go out into the
3:33darkness and put your hand into the hand
3:36of God that shall be to you better than
3:40light and safer than a known way it's
3:44been a long time since I've been home
3:45nearly eight years nearly 3,000 days I
3:48suppose a better way to measure how long
3:52it's been so our daughter is aiming an
3:54end when I left home so long to go Amy
3:59our older daughter was a sophomore in
4:01high school and it'll be two years this
4:04spring since she's graduated from
4:07college and now just recently Amy earned
4:10a master's degree and auntie our younger
4:15daughter was 8 years old when I left she
4:16was about this high mm-hmm
4:18now she's 16 and now she has her
4:20driver's license and she's doing good in
4:22school and she plays the piano and we're
4:26very proud of her too my baby's growing
4:32up so fast again on behalf of my family
4:37we want to express our profound his
4:39gratitude to President Trump it's been
4:40up long unhappy journeys these have been
4:43hard years for our children they've been
4:45hard years for Patti and for me I spent
4:48my first 32 months in prison nearly
4:51three years behind what the inmates
4:53called a razor wire a barbed wire fence
4:56you can't go near that fence if you do
4:58there are prison guards there armed with
5:01machine guns who have the discretion to
5:03shoot you I didn't go near that fact
5:08the buildings behind that fence for the
5:10inmates live in sleeper squalid places
5:13they're cold and dark like tombs ever
5:16about 11 nights they're drug dealers
5:20cartel members gangbangers bank robbers
5:23that were men they were committed murder
5:24con artists a lot of sex offenders about
5:28two percent of the population when the
5:30so called white-collar category for most
5:33of my time there my home was a six foot
5:37by 12 foot a six foot by eight foot
5:39prison cell with four cement walls a big
5:42heavy iron door that can shut you in a
5:45small window with bars on it and a bunk
5:48bed I slept on the top bunk often late
5:52at night I would look through that
5:53window and pass those bars out into the
5:56night sky and I think of home I think of
6:00my children I think of Patti sometimes
6:05sometimes I could almost feel her near
6:07me I would
6:13I would say to myself one day one day
6:15I'll make it back and I would remember
6:22what a gracious thing it's been to walk
6:25home like she sold you
6:28it's just soldier never I go what's that
6:30that's a soldier then she sure is I mean
6:32she's right yeah anyway so I get on
6:38behalf of Patty and Amy and Annie and me
6:40we want to again express our our deepest
6:42gratitude the President Trump like I
6:44said as the Republican president and the
6:46Democratic governor he didn't have to do
6:48this the president Trump is not a
6:50typical politician that's right he's
6:52tough he's outspoken he gets things done
6:54he's a problem solver in a business
6:56where too many politicians don't want to
6:59solve problems all they want to do is
7:01play politics and get nothing done for
7:03the people he's got a hammer Trump of
7:07crack the trouble Chris that's right you
7:10find realistic or go slower well I don't
7:13know that I'd allow me to vote but but
7:15I'll get into that in a minute but let
7:17me just say that makes Chicago great
7:19again
7:21our president is uh he's tough and
7:24outspoken and he has the courage to
7:26challenge the old way that's right he's
7:28the one who's actually fighting to bring
7:30real change that's why he gets so much
7:31pushback but notwithstanding being tough
7:34he's also a man with a kind heart that's
7:36right he sees wrong and he tries to ride
7:38it just like he did in the case of Alice
7:40Murray Johnson he you know who she is
7:42the grandmother from Alabama who served
7:44twenty wiedersehen with the help of
7:45organizations like cut 15 president
7:48Trump was able to build a necessary
7:50bipartisan support to pass the historic
7:53first step back a new law that begins
7:55the process of reforming a broken
7:57criminal justice system and putting it
8:00in to the racist injustice caused by
8:02that racist 1994 crime bill now asked
8:06for me obviously I've got 10,000 reasons
8:09to be thankful to President Trump I'm
8:11obviously thankful to be home to have my
8:13freedom back to just be able to hold my
8:16wife's hand
8:17but most of all I'm thankful to you mr.
8:19president for giving my daughters their
8:21father back my daughters are growing up
8:24and the day is not too far off when they
8:27will go out into the world on their own
8:29now I wish I could slow down time but no
8:32matter where their life's journey may
8:34lead they will always take with them the
8:36realization that the kindest gift
8:39they've ever received in their lives
8:40came from you Thank You mr. president
8:43for what you've done for me but better
8:45far far better thank you for what you've
8:48done for them I'd like to thank a few
8:50people real quick I'd like to thank my
8:52old friend the Reverend Jesse Jackson
8:54for his voice and for his help and for
8:56his support I want to thank my friend
9:00and former colleague in the Congress
9:02congressman Jesse Jackson jr. for his
9:04friendship and his support I want to
9:05thank Patti dad for alderman know
9:08Richard Mel for his love and support to
9:10our daughters and to his daughter Patti
9:13I want to thank this mystery man a young
9:15man who brought all this about I just
9:18met him yesterday and this is my Fergus
9:20he's quite a guy and he's uh he he's the
9:25kind of guy who can get you out of
9:26prison if you find yourself stuck near
9:28his efforts and what he's done on my
9:31behalf
9:35oh sorry yeah I got you it sorry okay oh
9:42one second my friend the Scriptures
9:45teach us and history shows that in the
9:47long run right defeated will in the end
9:49overcome history the Scriptures teaches
9:55and history shows that in the long run
9:56ripe defeated will in the end overcome
9:59wrong triumphant and as dr. Martin
10:01Luther King used to say truth crushed to
10:03earth will one day rise again that's
10:05right because no lie can live forever
10:07I'm returning home today from a long
10:09exile a freed political prisoner I want
10:13to say again to the free political
10:15prison that's right governor I didn't
10:18let you down I would have let you down
10:20if I gave into this but resistance to
10:23tyrants is but his obedience to God not
10:27long ago United States Supreme Court
10:28Justice Stephen Breyer warned about this
10:30he warned about federal prosecutors
10:33bringing criminal charges against
10:34government officials for what he
10:36described as routine practices Justice
10:39Breyer went on to point out and I'm
10:41quoting him to give that kind of power
10:43to a criminal prosecutor who is
10:45virtually uncontrollable is dangerous to
10:48our separation of powers and quote I
10:50learned the hard way just how dangerous
10:53that is from beginning to end this was
10:55persecution masquerading his prosecution
10:58I got into politics to help people I
11:02didn't get into politics to make money I
11:04didn't apologize to rich my family or my
11:06friends I got into politics because I
11:08was fortunate to live in the greatest
11:10country that's ever existed my immigrant
11:13father fought the Nazis he spent four
11:15years in a prisoner of war camp after
11:17that war II spent three years in a
11:19refugee camp waiting for the day that
11:21one day the Congress that one day his
11:23youngest son would become a member of we
11:25passed a law called the displaced
11:26persons Act to allow him and millions of
11:28others like him immigrants from all
11:30around the world long and hard to
11:31pronounce last names to be able to come
11:34to America to pursue freedom and
11:36opportunity my dad basically did about
11:38seven years in prison
11:41I got him beat I've done almost a but my
11:44dad believed in America he took the gift
11:45of freedom not for granted because he
11:47knew what it was like to live under
11:49oppression he didn't go back to his
11:51country Yugoslavia because it was a
11:52communist country where freedom wasn't
11:54allowed he came here and he got a job
11:57working in a factory and for most of his
11:59life all of his life in the United
12:01States my dad was a working man a
12:02factory worker and my mother was a
12:04working mother who worked for the
12:06Chicago Transit Authority passing out
12:08the transfers at the subway stations
12:10they never had a chance to live the
12:12American Dream and old on the home of
12:14their own but they worked hard and
12:15sacrificed so that their kids can have
12:17opportunities they didn't have this is
12:19the American story my mother and father
12:22lived at and so I'd like to think that
12:27as governor what I did was to try to
12:30draw in my own life experience and try
12:33to take those experiences and turn them
12:35into something real to help people
12:36that's why we provided health care to
12:38all the kids in Illinois through the all
12:39kids program because I saw as a young
12:42child my husband passed away from the
12:45period at the age of 12 and didn't have
12:47insurance and his mother and father lost
12:49what little they had we provided free
12:52transportations every one of our senior
12:53citizens are the disabled because I
12:56remember my father as a senior citizen
12:58being part of a senior citizen discount
12:59car together we could take the bus for
13:01half the price and we were able to take
13:03that and apply that to everybody in the
13:05state of Illinois I wouldn't allow that
13:07swamp in Springfield and my fellow
13:09Democrats down there who just wanted to
13:11raise taxes on the working people to
13:13raise their taxes so it was always a
13:16struggle a constant battle to try to
13:18remember who I was supposed to fight for
13:21and so I hope now looking to the future
13:24that I can draw from my life experience
13:26particularly those over the last eight
13:29years in prison and 11 years since this
13:31all came to us and do something to try
13:35to fight to help people who've been
13:36wrongfully incarcerated or those and
13:38this is probably the rule and not the
13:40exception those who have been over sent
13:42its nonviolent offenders who've made a
13:45mistake did wrong but have been
13:47sentenced to years in prison that not
13:49only destroyed their lives and steal
13:50from them their futures
13:52but they hurt their children their
13:53family I saw what they do destroy
13:55families because that's what happened to
13:57my own and every time I go into the
13:59visiting room to visit with my family
14:00I'd look around that room and I'd see
14:02mothers with their children and you can
14:04tell it was a mother because you can see
14:06it in the sadness of her face I would
14:08see father's with their young children
14:10and you can see the discomfort that the
14:15family feels so I hope that as I move
14:19forward I can take some of that
14:20experience that I've had and try to do
14:22what I can to try to improve what is a
14:24broken and I believe in many cases they
14:27corrupt the criminal justice system when
14:29it comes to crime and punishment in
14:31America the United States incarcerate
14:33six to ten times more people than any
14:35other industrialized nation in the world
14:37we put more people in jail than China
14:40and Russia
14:41federal prosecutors like to boast about
14:43their 97 percent conviction rate but
14:46doesn't that both show just how big this
14:48is there is unless you're the undefeated
14:50boxing champion Floyd money Mayweather
14:53who else ever wins ninety seven percent
14:55of the time at anything more ten and
14:58Nazi war criminals no yes for drugs no
15:02point money Mayweather has not everyday
15:10people every day people who who find
15:12themselves caught up in the system have
15:13no chance and many of them recognize the
15:16futility in fighting for their rights so
15:18they just give in and under duress
15:20because they're being threatened with
15:21long sentences they agree to plead
15:23guilty to things they didn't do on long
15:24war criminals unfair and cruel over
15:27sentencing is the rule it's not the
15:29exception equal protection under the law
15:31doesn't exist wildly unfair disparities
15:34in sentencing for the same or similar
15:36offenses are not uncommon and defy
15:38common sense and in way too many cases
15:40way too many nonviolent offenders are
15:43given way longer prison sentences and
15:46violent offenders and sex offenders
15:48who've actually caused great physical
15:50and emotional harm to their victims it
15:53is a broken criminal justice system and
15:56it has been for a long time and it's a
15:58racist criminal justice system but
16:01there's hope and one of the great
16:02ironies of history is that so far up
16:04till now in the history of our country
16:06no one has done more or is currently
16:08working to do more to fix this broken
16:10and racist criminal justice system and
16:12President Trump that's right
16:16one last thing I'm gonna dab this blood
16:19again am I good I just feel a mommy
16:24I'd like to say one thing about I'd like
16:26to say something about diversity and I'd
16:29like to direct my remarks to all of my
16:31fellow underdogs out there who find
16:33themselves up against powerful forces
16:35and long odds to anyone facing hard
16:38circumstances who've suffered loss a
16:41hurting or who like me have hit rock
16:45bottom you may be down all your hope may
16:49seem to have disappeared the road you
16:51have to travel is a long run at home
16:53that's where you want to be it's so far
16:56away you can't even see the flicker of a
17:00light at the end of the tunnel but don't
17:02give up don't give up think of the
17:05people you love
17:11I'll get it out hang on think of the
17:14people you love that's where you'll find
17:16your purpose
17:17my love for my family and my faith in
17:20God is what sustained me during this
17:22long and seemingly never-ending trial it
17:25gave me purpose to stay strong and along
17:28with Patti to try to set the right
17:30example for our daughters to show them
17:32that when adversity enters your life
17:35even when your calamity comes on like a
17:37whirlwind and just about everything just
17:41about everything has been taken away
17:44from you and your hearts broken don't
17:48quit
17:48fight fight keep fighting and persevere
17:52in storms and through the dark passages
17:55and when you find yourself alone all
17:58alone in the lonely wilderness because
18:01it is there in that lonely wilderness
18:03where we are tried and tested that we
18:05must rise to our circumstances we must
18:08rise above our circumstances and dare to
18:10dream it is not an ending but a
18:13beginning or out of weakness we are made
18:16strong every mile I ran every push up I
18:19did every book I read every word I wrote
18:21was my way of fighting back my way of
18:24using the time in the wilderness to
18:26prepare for a better day waiting in the
18:28shadows waiting for justice
18:30waiting and hoping
18:34so living faith hooking love the VidCon
18:36today yes piranha here more and if you
18:38have to take a stand and don't be afraid
18:41you're not alone you never go alone it
18:46is so often the case that in the sadness
18:48of life we look for God my faith in Him
18:55turn despair into hope it made me strong
18:59one day through the grace of God
20:09Amy Amy I don't want to touch
21:01[Music]
21:38[Music]
21:46was a woman of

About this transcript

This page contains the full transcript of [RAW] Rod Blagojevich Press Conference After Trump Pardon | News Magazine Chicago by News Magazine Chicago, generated from the public captions YouTube serves with the video. The transcript has 2,970 words across 420 segments, with the original timestamps preserved so you can click any line to jump to that moment in the embedded player.

What you can do with it

Use the transcript to take notes, quote the speaker, build a study guide, generate a summary with ChatGPT or Claude via the YouTube Summary tool, or export it as a timed subtitle file with YouTube to SRT. You can also re-open it in the transcriber to translate the transcript into 100+ languages.

Free YouTube transcript tool

YouTube2Text is a free YouTube transcript generator — no signup, no daily limit. Paste any YouTube link and get the full transcript instantly, with timestamps, click-to-jump, translation to 100+ languages, AI prompts for ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini, and exports to TXT, SRT, VTT, or Markdown.