Bill Barr urges Senate Republicans to confirm Todd Blanche as AG nominee
AG Blanche criticizes Pritzker for refusing aid as crime soars in Chicago
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is criticizing Illinois Governor JB Pritzker for rejecting federal aid to combat rising gun violence in Chicago, despite 37 shootings in two days. Blanche details how Washington, D.C. experienced significant reductions in crime following federal intervention. It also highlights the FBI’s success in catching a $1.2 billion Medicare fraudster and recovering $5 billion in stolen funds.
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Former Attorney General Bill Barr is urging Senate Republicans to confirm Todd Blanche as attorney general, arguing that the former Trump defense attorney’s close relationship with the president should be viewed as a strength, not a conflict of interest.
In an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal, Barr, who served as attorney general during the first Trump administration, said Blanche should be confirmed, calling herself qualified and saying she would “lead the department as effectively as anyone under President Trump and provide much-needed leadership and stability.”
Barr’s objection comes as Blanche faces a potentially difficult confirmation process in the Senate. Republicans hold a 53-seat majority, but some GOP senators are noncommittal about supporting the nomination.
Much of Barr’s argument focused on countering criticism that Blanche’s background as President Donald Trump’s personal defense attorney makes her too conflicted to lead the Justice Department.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche arrives at the House Appropriations Committee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Subcommittee hearing titled “Oversight Hearing – Department of Justice” held at the Rayburn Building on June 2, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc)
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“Critics say Mr. Blanche, who serves as the president’s personal defense attorney, would not confront the president with hard facts. The opposite is true,” Barr wrote.
“A successful criminal defense lawyer like Mr. Blanche is not a sycophant who sugarcoats the facts to his client,” Barr continued. “This job requires confronting strong-willed clients with harsh realities on a regular basis. This necessarily involves conflict, but the lawyer’s dogged willingness to ground the client in reality is what builds trust and makes the relationship effective.”
Barr wrote that Blanche’s relationship with Trump should be seen as an advantage rather than a liability.
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Former Attorney General William Barr speaks at the Federalist Society meeting in Washington, DC, on September 20, 2022. Barr spoke at the Education Law and Policy Conference hosted by the Federalist Association for the Study of Law and Public Policy. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
“The President takes tough advice from people who have his best interests at heart,” Barr wrote. “Mr. Blanche, who has assisted the president in his legal battles, is probably the best positioned person in the country to give the president strong advice and get him to accept it. Senators should view a trusting relationship as a positive, not a negative.”
Barr also rejected suggestions that Blanche would carry out Trump’s wishes without independent judgment.
“The left has portrayed Mr. Blanche as a man who would docilely carry out the president’s desires,” Barr wrote. “But Mr. Blanche is not shy about giving direct advice to the president and pushing back on bad ideas when necessary. He doesn’t always prevail, but frankly no one has a better shot at reaching Mr. Trump.”
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Since taking office as acting attorney general following Pam Bondi’s departure, Blanche has been under intense scrutiny for her leadership of cases against some of Trump’s biggest enemies, including the most recent indictment of former FBI Director James Comey. He also faced blowback over the Justice Department’s failed effort to create a Counterproliferation Fund.
The debates contributed to uncertainty over Blanche’s approval; Many Republican senators publicly acknowledged their reservations about his nomination.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he was undecided and attributed his support in part to concerns about defunding.
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President Donald Trump speaks alongside Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche during a press conference in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on June 27, 2025. Trump called it a “GIANT WIN” after the Supreme Court limited the power of single federal judges to block executive actions. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)
“If the weaponization fund is not actually shut down at the confirmation hearing, that will be a problem,” Tillis said.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, another Judiciary Committee member, also withheld his support, saying he wanted additional information before making a decision.
Cornyn said he plans to wait until he gets a full briefing and hears Blanche’s testimony before deciding whether to support the nomination, the Houston Chronicle reported.
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Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on Blanche’s nomination are scheduled for mid-July as Republicans weigh whether to accept Trump’s nominee into the full Senate.
Barr served as attorney general under both President George H. W. Bush and President Trump. Although he was a key figure in the Trump administration and defended many of the president’s policies, he later became one of Trump’s most prominent critics over allegations of widespread voter fraud following the 2020 election.
