By Jordan Heller
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — Mayor Michael Bloomberg defended the $25,000 donation he made to Rod Blagojevich’s 2006 re-election campaign, saying the contribution came before the governor was tarred by scandal and was motivated by shared views on political issues, the New York Times reported.
The connection between Bloomberg and the disgraced former Illinois governor, who was impeached after allegedly trying to sell former Senator Barack Obama's seat to the highest bidder, emerged during testimony this week in Blagoyevich's corruption trial.
The donation was one of the largest made to the impeached governor’s successful re-election campaign, the Times reported.
“I made lots of campaign donations at that time. His was less than some of the others,” Bloomberg said during a Tuesday news conference in Queens, according to the New York Times. “There was never any scandal about him in those days and so I supported him.”
Bloomberg added that the donation was motivated by his and Blagojevich's shared views on abortion rights, gun control and the importation of prescription drugs from Canada, according to the Times.
