@Right_in_Virginia ... Thanks for the explanation. I think your concerns are a bit over the top. I don't think Blago's a friend. I think the President genuinely considers 14 years in prison for a political crime over the top and there have been petitions for commutation, even pardon, for years.
Blago may not be a friend, but Trump was wrong to say he didn't know him, for he did know him from that Apprentice show. And the further remark that Blago seemed like a nice guy? Well, yeah, a lot of criminals seem like nice guys. Ted Bundy was described as a nice guy too. Would that have been a good reason not to execute him? Anyway, Trump's comments seem a bit off to me, and I don't see them as reasons to commute Blago's sentence.
As for the Washington Examiner article you cited: it reads like a typical pro-Trump conspiracy theory BS piece. What do Trump's difficulties with Mueller, et al have to do with whether Blago was guilty or innocent and whether he deserved all that prison time? And by the way, I thought Trump said Mueller's report and subsequent testimony exonerated him. So why are Trump and his supporters still complaining about him now?
And the two cases cited by the author -- Menendez and McDonnell -- what do the outcomes of those cases have to do with the Blago case? Different facts and different outcomes. Just because those guys aren't in prison doesn't mean Blago should not have been convicted and should have not served his time.
One last thing: the suffering of Blago's family while he sits in prison. In my view, Blago should have thought about the consequences to his family should he be caught
before he committed the crimes he was convicted of.
Sorry, but I still see nothing good and right about letting Blago before his sentence is up, but I do see a lot of wrong. Just my opinion, for what little it's worth.