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Blanche nomination tied to fund
President Donald Trump threatened on Saturday to keep acting Attorney General Todd Blanche in his current role and “push hard” for an “Anti-Weaponization Bill” if Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina do not support Blanche’s confirmation.
“Trump on Saturday threatened to push forward with a fund to compensate his allies”
Trump’s ultimatum came after Cornyn and Tillis blocked the Senate Judiciary Committee from advancing Blanche’s nomination, and Trump said he would send the nomination back to the Senate after both lawmakers leave office next year.
The dispute centers on a $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization” fund announced as part of a settlement from Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service, with the Justice Department saying it would administer the fund to compensate people who claim they were targeted by a “weaponized” justice system.
The Associated Press reported that the administration needs Cornyn and Tillis’s votes, while the Justice Department has provided language saying Blanche’s May 18 order establishing the “Anti-Weaponization Fund” is “rescinded and shall have no force or effect.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee chair, Sen. Chuck Grassley, rescheduled a committee vote for Tuesday, with a committee spokesperson saying the markup “gives more time for the White House to secure the votes for the President’s nominee.”
Cornyn and Tillis push back
Tillis responded to Trump’s Saturday threat on X, saying: “Despite comments as late as yesterday that the fund is dead, President Trump clearly intends to resurrect the payout pot for punks either by inappropriately establishing another bogus fund or pushing Congress to vote for a bill that the majority of Republicans in the Senate would be against.”
Cornyn and Tillis have protested Blanche’s selection because of a lawsuit settlement that created a $1.8 billion fund and provided Trump and family members with immunity from tax audits, according to the Associated Press.
The AP reported that Cornyn said this week it was his understanding the audits could extend to more than 100 Trump Organization subsidiaries in the future, while Cornyn said Blanche told him the immunity was limited to the parties to the litigation.
In a separate framing, Fox News said Trump “blasted rogue GOP senators” and tied the nomination fight to a proposed “Anti-Weaponization Bill” that would replace the controversial DOJ-created anti-weaponization fund.
Fox News also quoted Cornyn’s approach to the standoff, saying: “I think I am prepared to vote no, but I do think I owe it to my constituents and to Mr. Blanche to try to negotiate in good faith.”
What’s at stake next
The next step is a Senate Judiciary Committee vote scheduled for Tuesday, after Grassley rescheduled the Blanche nomination vote and a committee spokesperson said the timing would “gives more time for the White House to secure the votes for the President’s nominee.”
““gives more time for the White House to secure the votes for the President’s nominee.””
Trump’s threat also raised the possibility that Blanche could remain in the acting attorney general role if Cornyn and Tillis continue to withhold support, with Emirates 24|7 reporting that acting officials can serve as long as their nomination is pending and not formally rejected or withdrawn.
The Associated Press said the Department of Justice has provided language that Blanche’s May 18 order establishing the “Anti-Weaponization Fund” is “rescinded and shall have no force or effect,” while the dispute persists over whether the settlement’s terms should be formalized in writing.
The Guardian reported that opponents consider the program a “slush fund” to compensate political allies, while supporters say it is a vehicle to compensate individuals who claim they were wrongfully targeted by the government more broadly.
In the background of the confirmation fight, the Guardian said Trump wrote that the fund “will not benefit me, but rather the great American Patriots who were hunted down like dogs,” and it described the settlement as part of Trump’s $10bn lawsuit against the IRS over allegedly mishandling his tax records.
