Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s confirmation process to permanently remain in the position was set back on Wednesday when a key Senate committee postponed a key vote advancing his nomination.
A spokesperson for the Senate judiciary committee, which is led by Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA), suggested Wednesday’s vote was pushed back because Blanche lacks the support necessary to advance his nomination. Several Republicans on the committee, including Sens. Thom Tillis (R-NC) and John Cornyn (R-TX), are on the line on whether to vote for Blanche due to the Department of Justice’s controversial “anti-weaponization fund,” which aims to recompense individuals the White House believes were targeted for political reasons.
“Chairman Grassley works to set President Trump’s nominees up for success in committee, not failure,” the spokesperson said. “Senators Cornyn and Tillis want written assurances from the Department of Justice regarding the Trump-IRS settlement. Tomorrow’s markup is postponed as work continues to secure sufficient support in committee to favorably report Attorney General-nominee Todd Blanche, who is highly qualified for the job.”
According to sources familiar with the situation, DOJ has transmitted a new response to Cornyn and Tillis that addresses their concerns. A DOJ official told the Washington Examiner that the department provided a written proposal to Cornyn’s staff on Tuesday “following ongoing discussion with both the Committee and the Senator’s office.” The official said, “We look forward to further discussion around any outstanding concerns.”
The Washington Examiner contacted the DOJ for more details about whether the pair of Republican holdouts were left unsatisfied by the updated response to them on Wednesday evening but did not receive a response.
Earlier in the day, Cornyn told reporters he was scheduled to meet with Blanche on Wednesday morning, but the meeting never took place. Cornyn said he and his staff provided the DOJ with a “red-line strikeout” outlining potential changes.
“I don’t know whether there’ll be a markup tomorrow,” Cornyn later added.
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Tillis, who has raised similar concerns about the fund, was also not a certain vote for Blanche. “He’s not walking away from it,” Tillis said Wednesday of Cornyn. “He’s just being realistic about planning a markup.”
Cornyn is pressing the DOJ to spell out how broadly the settlement’s audit-immunity provision would apply, including whether it would shield recipients from enforcement by agencies beyond the IRS and Treasury Department.