Todd Blanche nomination hits GOP roadblock as Republicans demand answers

BS BRIEFING

The Senate Judiciary Committee abruptly postponed a scheduled vote on Todd Blanche’s nomination for Attorney General after Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina refused to support advancing the nomination without additional written commitments from the Justice Department.
The dispute centers on a controversial $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization” fund included in a Trump-IRS settlement agreement. Although Blanche has repeatedly testified the fund is “dead,” Cornyn and Tillis insist that promise be formally memorialized in writing before they vote.
The delay is one of the first significant instances this year of Republican senators publicly forcing the Trump administration back to the negotiating table over a major Cabinet nominee.

GOP SENATORS PUT THE BRAKES ON BLANCHE AS AG NOMINATION STALLS

President Trump’s nominee to become the nation’s next Attorney General has hit an unexpected speed bump—not from Democrats, but from members of his own party.

Late Wednesday, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley postponed a scheduled committee vote on acting Attorney General Todd Blanche after it became clear Republicans lacked the votes needed to advance his nomination.

Rather than risk an embarrassing defeat, Grassley pulled the markup altogether.

“Chairman Grassley works to set President Trump’s nominees up for success in committee, not failure,” a committee spokesman said. “Tomorrow’s markup is postponed as work continues to secure sufficient support in committee to favorably report Attorney General-nominee Todd Blanche, who is highly qualified for the job.”

The holdup centers on a controversial settlement Blanche negotiated while serving as acting attorney general.

That agreement originally included a proposed $1.776 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” designed to compensate people claiming they were targeted by politically motivated Justice Department actions. The proposal immediately drew criticism from both Republicans and Democrats, particularly over concerns that some January 6 defendants could potentially seek compensation.

Blanche has repeatedly insisted the fund is finished.

“It is a moot issue, meaning there is no weaponization fund,” Blanche told senators during his confirmation hearing. “The weaponization fund is dead. It’s not moving forward.”

That hasn’t satisfied Texas Sen. John Cornyn. Cornyn argues that while Blanche says the fund is dead, the settlement agreement itself still exists on paper and has never been formally amended.

During Blanche’s confirmation hearing, Cornyn pressed him repeatedly. “Has there been a written agreement of the parties to modify the settlement fund?”

Blanche answered simply: “No.”

Cornyn later accused the Justice Department of dragging its feet despite months of negotiations. “They’ve simply refused to cooperate,” he told reporters Wednesday evening after saying DOJ had “stonewalled” his requests. “We actually sent them a red-line strikeout of what we need, and they just need to make a decision.”

North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis largely backed Cornyn’s position. “I want to stick a fork in this turkey,” Tillis said of the proposed fund during Blanche’s confirmation proceedings.

He later warned that if negotiations weren’t completed before Thursday’s meeting, he would simply refuse to attend, preventing the committee from reaching a quorum. “I don’t want the chairman to have a failed markup,” Tillis explained.

The disagreement goes beyond the fund itself.

Cornyn is also demanding written clarification regarding provisions in the settlement involving tax audit protections for President Trump and related parties. While Blanche has indicated the Justice Department has no intention of reviving the fund, Cornyn argues future administrations—or even the current parties to the settlement—could attempt to enforce portions of the existing agreement unless it’s formally revised.

President Trump has continued expressing confidence in Blanche publicly, while Justice Department officials remained engaged in negotiations with senators Wednesday night in hopes of salvaging the nomination before the Senate’s August recess.

Blanche, Trump’s former personal attorney, has served as acting attorney general since April following the departure of Pam Bondi. His confirmation had been widely expected until opposition from Cornyn and Tillis unexpectedly placed the nomination in jeopardy.

DBS WIRE SOURCES