WASHINGTON — Deputy attorney general nominee Todd Blanche shut down efforts by Democratic senators Wednesday to characterize recent Department of Justice (DOJ) decisions as “retribution” against President Donald Trump’s opponents.
During his confirmation hearing, Blanche stressed that politics would “play no role” in his decision making as the DOJ’s second-in-charge, telling the Senate Judiciary Committee his time as Trump’s attorney taught him how power of prosecutors can be weaponized.
“It is important to remember that while the Department of Justice can save lives, it can also ruin lives,” he said in his opening statement.
Blanche noted he is “not a Washington insider,” describing his background as a federal prosecutor in New York focusing on violent gang members. If confirmed, he said he intends to “continue the mission that was started on January 20” by prosecuting gangs and terrorists.
The DOJ has already started cracking down on illegal immigration, filing lawsuits over sanctuary city policies that prevent federal officials from enforcing immigration laws and pulling funding from sanctuary cities at Attorney General Pam Bondi’s direction.
Bondi issued over a dozen directives after she was sworn in Feb. 5, including the establishment of a Weaponization Working Group, which Blanche is set to play a key role in leading if confirmed. The group will look into former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s efforts to target Trump, potential cooperation between federal officials and local prosecutors who brought cases against him, as well as prosecutions of pro-life activists.
During the hearing, Democratic Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin referenced efforts by acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove to collect names of FBI agents who worked on Jan. 6 prosecutions, suggesting the names would be disclosed to the public and agents would be purged on a political basis.
Blanche said this was “not his read” of the situation, explaining the DOJ was collecting names to ensure what happened “doesn’t happen again.”
Democratic California Sen. Adam Schiff asked Blanche if it would be a conflict of interest to participate in the weaponization working group, asking if he would recuse from overseeing investigations relating to cases he worked on as Trump’s attorney.
“I will follow the rules as told to me by the experts, career prosecutors in the department,” Blanche said.
Gail Slater, Trump’s nominee for assistant attorney general for the DOJ’s antitrust division, also took questions during the hearing, though most senators focused their time on Blanche.
Blanche represented Trump during his criminal trial in Manhattan, as well as in both his federal cases brought by Smith. He described being Trump’s attorney as the “greatest job” he’s ever had.
“It opened my eyes, for sure, to what happens when politics takes the place of justice,” he said.
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