Senate Confirms Todd Blanche as Attorney General in Narrow Vote

Washington, D.C. – The US Senate voted to confirm Todd Blanche as attorney general in a major win for Donald Trump, who will now have his one-time personal attorney sitting atop the nation's law enforcement apparatus.

Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana cast the deciding vote in Blanche's favor after two other Republicans – Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska – voted against him. Every Democrat rejected Blanche's nomination.

"Mr Blanche is not perfect, and he will tell you this, but the choice is not between perfection and Mr Blanche," Cassidy said Friday on the senate floor announcing his decision. "It is between Mr Blanche and another acting attorney general who may not run the department effectively under President Trump and who indeed may not be as good as Mr Blanche."

The vote came after Blanche's nomination had been in limbo for weeks. He faced pushback from Republican senators over the department's deal to create a $1.8bn so-called "anti-weaponization fund" and to give the president, his sons, and business tax immunity. That appears to have cost Blanche among at least some GOP senators who will oppose his nomination.

"I am also keenly aware that the Department's nearly $2-billion dollar slush fund—which likely would have rewarded January 6 protesters—is only off the table because this nomination is pending and the Senate has leverage. Once we vote, that will end, and there is no telling what the future holds," Murkowski said in a post on X on Friday, announcing she was voting against Blanche.

But John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina successfully pushed Blanche to put in writing that the fund was not moving forward and to clarify the scope of the IRS deal. Even though experts said the assurances were far from ironclad, Cornyn and Tillis wound up supporting Blanche, allowing his nomination to narrowly clear the Senate judiciary committee.

Blanche's Controversial Record

Blanche also faced heavy criticism for the department's sloppy rollout of files related to Jeffrey Epstein, which redacted information that should not have been redacted and left unredacted the names of victims that should have been kept private. During his confirmation hearing, Blanche refused to personally meet with Epstein victims, then agreed to do so. The survivors said they received few answers from Blanche during the meeting.

Blanche, who left a lucrative partnership to represent Trump in 2023, has been at the center of the president's attempt to bend the federal government to his will. Scores of career justice department attorneys have left the agency under his leadership. Department lawyers have been rebuked by judges across the US for making misrepresentations to the court.

Political Prosecutions Under Blanche

Blanche has also been at the center of Trump's efforts to use the justice department to punish political rivals. During his tenure as both the deputy attorney general and acting attorney general, the department has indicted former FBI director James Comey twice, New York attorney general Letitia James, the non-profit Southern Poverty Law Center – all in cases that experts see as thin. It has also tried to bring criminal charges against two Democratic senators, Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and Mark Kelly of Arizona, and used its investigative powers to try and get leverage over Jerome Powell, the former chairman of the federal reserve.

As his nomination was pending, Blanche also promised anti-abortion advocates the department would make it permanent in every state, according to Politico.

Senate Opposition

"While I believe Mr Blanche is a capable lawyer, the Department of Justice has become increasingly political," Collins, who is running for re-election in Maine, said earlier this week. "Mr Blanche has taken several actions that have further eroded the department's independence, and that is the basis for my vote to oppose his confirmation."

Earlier this year, Blanche spoke about how he would feel if someone else was named attorney general.

"As to whether or not I want this job, I did not ask for this job. I love working for President Trump, it's the greatest honor of a lifetime," he said in April, shortly after being named the acting attorney general.

"If he chooses to nominate somebody else and asks me to go do something else, I will say, 'Thank you very much. I love you, sir.' I don't have any goals or aspirations beyond that."

Cassidy's Decisive Role

Cassidy, who lost his Louisiana primary in May after facing two challengers, including one backed by Trump, had faced weeks of pressure from the White House and had voiced concerns about "lawfare" at the justice department before announcing his decision.

Murkowski, Alaska's moderate Republican senator, had announced earlier on Friday that she would not vote for Blanche's confirmation, leaving his path to the job down to a single Republican vote.

Murkowski's announcement came a day after Trump, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday, was asked about his fraying relationships with Republican critics including Murkowski and Cassidy and whether the president would reach out to either Republican senator to save the vote.

"I'll reach out to whoever I have to, but anybody voting against [Blanche] would be doing a great disservice to the country," Trump told reporters.

"People have such unbelievable respect" for Blanche, he claimed, expressing hope that reaching out to those lawmakers "won't be necessary".

What's Next

Key developments to watch:

• Slush fund revival: Potential revival of $1.8bn fund now Senate leverage gone
• Political prosecutions: Continued DOJ actions against Trump rivals
• Career departures: More justice department attorneys leaving
• Epstein files: Further fallout from mishandled documents
• Midterm elections: DOJ role in upcoming campaigns