Trump says he may WITHDRAW his attorney general pick as he tears into two rogue Republicans
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President Donald Trump said he had “no objection” to temporarily withdrawing Senate confirmation of attorney general nominee Todd Blanche after two Republicans refused to vote for him.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he had “no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd’s name” if two outgoing Republican senators, John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, “don’t do the right thing” and vote to confirm him in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Trump said he would submit Blanche’s candidacy back to the panel for a vote after the midterm elections.
Trump’s remarks cap a weeks-long dispute with the committee’s two Republican members, Cornyn and Tillis, over the text of a comprehensive tax exemption agreement for Trump and family members. $1.8 billion ‘anti-weapons fund’. These concerns were significant enough to cause two Republicans to withdraw their ‘yes’ votes. Written confirmation from the Department of Justice that the IRS settlement and anti-proliferation fund are ‘dead’. Blanche accepted this Written amendments would be needed to prevent Trump from theoretically reviving the agreement in the future.
But after weeks of back-and-forth talks with the Justice Department and the proposals, the two sides remained at an impasse, with Cornyn telling reporters they were “no closer than they were before” to getting the requested changes.
Trump’s apparent willingness to gamble with the attorney general nominee’s fate to keep alive a sweeping IRS deal that would shield Trump and his family from tax audits offered new insight into the president’s motivations in his second term in the White House.
Cornyn suggested Thursday that concerns about Blanche’s confirmation were shared by others in the room, noting on social media: Embers is “Cornyn is mistaken if he believes that concerns about provisions in the tax settlement are limited to me and Senator Tillis,” he said.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this month
Trump, then-Attorney General Pam Bondi and Todd Blanche speak to reporters
Trump and his then-personal lawyer Todd Blanche speak to the press outside Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City
Cornyn speaks to reporters after votes at the US Capitol
The impasse threatens to cripple Blanche’s near-term confirmation hopes and leaves Trump without a Senate-confirmed attorney general.
Additionally, blocking the requested changes could lead to a re-examination of the IRS settlement. The deal and the so-called anti-proliferation fund had already created new rifts within the Republican Party and the Trump administration.
GOP leaders have shown a greater willingness to impeach the President on his legislative priorities; That could complicate things for him in the final months before the midterm elections.
A spokesman for the Senate Judiciary Committee acknowledged that Blanche’s nomination did not have enough votes to advance through the committee, saying the panel’s chairman, Senator Chuck Grassley, was trying to ‘set President Trump’s nominees up for success, not failure, in committee.’
‘Senators Cornyn and Tillis want written assurances from the Justice Department regarding the Trump-IRS deal. “Tomorrow’s marking has been postponed as efforts continue to secure sufficient support in the committee to report favorably to Attorney General nominee Todd Blanche, who is highly qualified for the job,” the spokesman said.
That’s not the only problem that could plague Blanche in the coming days or weeks.
Blanche spent her confirmation hearing earlier this month answering tough questions from Democrats and Republicans who repeatedly pressed her about controversial actions taken by the Justice Department during Trump’s second term as president.
Lawmakers grilled Blanche about the Justice Department’s bungled release of the Epstein files, her personal loyalty to Trump and concerns about pursuing politically motivated investigations or punishing career officials who refuse to follow those marching orders.
The two sides have been in contact, a Justice Department spokesman said Tuesday.
The Department of Justice ‘submitted a written proposal to Senator Cornyn’s staff following ongoing discussions with both the Committee and the Senator’s office’, adding that they ‘look forward to further discussion on the significant concerns’.
