Two Republican senators are refusing to commit their votes for Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche as he enters Day 2 of his confirmation hearing — putting President Trump’s DOJ pick in serious jeopardy.
Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and John Cornyn of Texas hold the swing votes on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Both remain noncommittal after Blanche faced a brutal Day 1 grilling over his loyalty to Trump, the $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund, and the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein Files.
With Democrats dug in against him, Blanche can’t afford to lose a single Republican vote.
“I don’t know what other information’s gonna be coming in. The hearing is not even halfway done. And so, you know, I don’t have to make a decision now, so I’m not.” — Sen. John Cornyn
Cornyn’s primary objection centers on the nearly $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund created under a Trump IRS settlement to compensate people who claimed they were victims of government weaponization. Blanche acknowledged the fund was still “enforceable” but said it was not moving forward.
That answer wasn’t enough for Cornyn.
Tillis shares the same concern — whether the controversial fund is truly dead. But he noted that when asked if he’d support legislation to permanently kill it, Blanche said “Yes.”
“Does anybody really believe that the nominee for attorney general would answer that question if he didn’t think that he had the support of the president to end this?” — Sen. Thom Tillis
Blanche also drew fire for being Trump’s former personal defense lawyer. Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana asked Blanche if he considered himself the president’s friend.
Blanche corrected himself on the spot: “I’m his lawyer — was his lawyer, and now I’m the deputy attorney general.”
When asked about the slip-up, Cornyn said Blanche is “trying to walk a very difficult line.”
Senate Democrats are unanimous in opposition. Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the committee, attacked Blanche over the Epstein Files release and accused him of lacking integrity for representing Trump.
“Anyone who can represent a known pathological liar like Donald Trump can have no integrity. You can’t have integrity if you represent Donald Trump, because he is such an inveterate liar. And that person, of course, should never, never, never be attorney general.” — Sen. Dick Durbin
Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware admitted Blanche was “qualified … as someone who has been a prosecutor,” but claimed Blanche would weaponize the DOJ “to carry out a retribution agenda by President Trump.”
Blanche faces a second day of questioning with his confirmation hanging by a thread. Republicans hold a narrow majority on the committee — but without Tillis and Cornyn, Trump’s AG pick could be dead on arrival.
