Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche hasn’t yet won over Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), and his confirmation hearing to permanently lead the Justice Department did little to quell concerns about the Trump administration’s “anti-weaponization” fund.
Blanche came into his hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing with a clear objective: win over Cornyn and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) and lock down the panel’s approval before getting a full vote on the floor.
Tillis told reporters afterward that he is “leaning yes” on the nomination. That leaves Cornyn as Blanche’s main obstacle. Cornyn made clear he was still undecided after Blanche gave what he viewed as insufficient assurances that the $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund is dead. He was also concerned about a related tax immunity deal struck with President Donald Trump and his family.
“It seems to me, particularly … on the tax case, he certainly leaned in to help the president more than what was necessary to resolve the case,” Cornyn said.
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“I’m just listening. I’m a sponge. I’m soaking it all up,” he continued. “I don’t have to decide now. … I’ll make a decision when I need to, but not before.”
Cornyn’s questioning focused largely on the twin issues, which have given Senate Republicans a significant amount of consternation in recent months. The Texas Republican, who will leave the Senate at the end of the year after losing his May primary, asked about the acting AG’s decision to green-light a deal that “forever barred” the IRS from auditing Trump’s previous tax returns.
“There’s so much that’s unusual about this,” Cornyn told the AG nominee.
The deal was born out of the Justice Department’s decision to dismiss the president’s $10 billion suit against the IRS for leaking his tax return — prompting creation of the much-derided “anti-weaponization” fund that has since been scuttled. Members were particularly worried that the fund could be used to pay rioters who were involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
The main question from Cornyn was whether the fund is truly dead. Blanche told members throughout the hearing that the fund is “moot” and will not move forward, adding that he’s made the proclamation under oath.
That wasn’t good enough for Cornyn, who argued that absent codification or a declaration in writing, it could return via a lawsuit.
“I disagree with him that the weaponization fund is gone,” Cornyn said. “It’s still part of the settlement agreement. It hasn’t been changed in writing, which is what the agreement requires, and it could be revived later on through a breach of contract lawsuit. I hope there’s some ideas about trying to get a [bill passed via unanimous consent] to basically bar a weaponization fund that I could support that would help address that.”
Despite the issues raised by Cornyn, the day wasn’t without progress toward confirmation, thanks to Tillis warming to Blanche. The North Carolina senator told reporters that he was “leaning yes” on his confirmation, pending putting it in writing to “stick a fork” in the fund.
“You’ve done a great job today,” Tillis told Blanche at the conclusion of the senator’s questioning.
The opposition of either senator would significantly complicate Blanche’s nomination. Until the committee seat of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) is filled, Republicans hold an 11-to-10 advantage on the panel.
Republicans hope to confirm Blanche before they break in early August for a monthlong recess.
Committee members indicated that despite the tough questioning by Cornyn, they remain hopeful Blanche will get over the finish line.
“John raised some very legitimate questions,” said Sen. John Kenendy (R-Louisiana), noting that a federal court recently struck down the Trump-championed fund. “I think he will [still get confirmed].”
On top of the Cornyn tumult, there were stumbles by the DOJ nominee that quickly caught the attention of Democrats. After Kennedy asked if he and the president were friends, Blanche responded, “I’m his lawyer.”
“Was his lawyer,” he said, quickly correcting himself. “And now I’m the deputy attorney general.”
If Blanche is able to win over Cornyn and sway the full panel, he still won’t have an easy road with the full conference. With Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) hospitalized, the nominee can only afford to lose two members — with Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) having most often bucked the president on nominees.
Murkowski told reporters recently that she is keeping an open mind on Blanche’s nomination, noting that he spent part of the July Fourth break visiting a rural Alaskan village that is facing law enforcement challenges.
“I’m going to be doing some follow on [that],” she said.
However, the most acute issue for now is Cornyn, who is finding himself in a rare position as the likely tie-breaking vote. Even so, he distanced himself from that label.
“There are a lot of swing votes,” Cornyn told NOTUS. When told that Tillis indicated he was leaning toward supporting Blanche, he said he didn’t believe he was alone in his thinking.
“I’ve talked to other members, and I think this idea that all other Republicans are going to fall in line is not necessarily correct,” Cornyn said. “When he says the weaponization fund is dead, I disagree. And others may disagree as well.”
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