US President Donald Trump issued a full pardon for Rod Blagojevich on Monday. The former Illinois governor was impeached and convicted of corruption while in office. The pardon, made through the broad presidential authority outlined in Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the US Constitution, will officially negate Blagojevich’s conviction and expunge his criminal record.

While this executive act is a well-established component of presidential authority, there are concerns that President Trump’s recent slate of pardons, which appear to reward personal loyalty to Trump, could undermine essential legal safeguards designed to prevent corruption. This could create a precedent of legal immunity for Trump allies, which could embolden his supporters to engage in illegal acts of corruption, replacing the rule of law with a system that functions based on loyalty to the current executive.

Blagojevich was convicted on charges of corruption in 2011 for attempting to sell Barack Obama’s Senate seat after Obama won the presidency, and extorting a children’s hospital. The pardon was criticized by both Democrats and Republicans in Illinois.

While Blagojevich was a Democrat in office, he publicly proclaimed his support for Trump in the intervening years.

Recently, Trump has pardoned many people convicted of offenses for attempting to undermine state institutions, including 1,500 rioters involved in the attempted insurrection of January 6, 2020. In addition, the Trump administration has attempted to fire members of the government that were involved in prosecuting Trump, his associates, and the individuals involved in the attempted insurrection.

In 2020, Trump commuted Blagojevich’s sentence after he had served eight of 14 years in prison. Although commuting the sentence freed Blagojevich from prison by reducing his sentence, this act did not clear his criminal record. Blagojevich continues to be barred from holding elected public office at the state level in Illinois, although it is unclear whether this ban extends to the federal level.

That being said, there is speculation that the Trump administration will appoint Blagojevich as ambassador to Serbia.