EXCLUSIVE — Steve Bannon is predicting that President Donald Trump’s increasingly strained relationship with Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) is headed toward an irreparable break, arguing that a showdown over acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s nomination may be the final straw.
Bannon, Trump’s former chief strategist and a close outside ally, told the Washington Examiner that Thune — not Trump — will be blamed if Blanche’s nomination collapses because of resistance from Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Thom Tillis (R-NC).
“I don’t think it’ll be rebuilt,” Bannon told the Washington Examiner of Trump’s relationship with Thune. “I think it’s going to lead to a leadership throwdown here, and particularly if he pulls the nomination of Todd Blanche, he’s going to go to war with Thune because this is Thune’s responsibility to handle these senators, not Trump’s.”
Trump has long been frustrated with the Senate GOP over its inability to pass the SAVE America Act, an election integrity measure that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and a voter ID to cast a ballot nationwide. Thune has repeatedly said there is insufficient Democratic support to overcome the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster and insufficient Republican support to eliminate it. Republicans have a 53-47 majority in the Senate.
That simmering frustration has now collided with Blanche’s nomination to become attorney general after serving in the role on an acting basis.
Cornyn and Tilis are demanding that Blanche and the Justice Department amend an IRS settlement over Trump’s leaked tax returns. The duo wants the agreement to nix the creation of a $1.776 billion anti-weaponization fund that could have paid out to Jan. 6, 2021, defendants and put guardrails into place over Trump’s immunity from prior audits.
Blanche has already told the Senate Judiciary Committee that the anti-weaponization fund is dead, but the lawmakers want more than just a verbal assurance.
Because Cornyn and Tillis sit on the Senate Judiciary Committee, their opposition forced the panel to scrap a vote on advancing Blanche’s nomination. Given the committee’s 11-10 Republican majority, the two senators are critical to sending Blanche to the Senate floor. Without committee approval, Republicans would need Democratic support to overcome a filibuster and bring the nomination up for a vote.
Trump took to Truth Social on Thursday to stand behind Blanche. “Todd Blanche is a STAR, and everyone knows it! He has the potential to go down as one of the Greatest Attorney Generals of All Time,” wrote Trump. “However, John Cornyn, of Texas, and Thom Thillis, of North Carolina, both of whom I refused to Endorse, and whose political careers have been ended by my action, are refusing to vote for this Great Nominee, who will remain, in any event, as Acting.”
The Blanche standoff and the impasse over the SAVE America Act have further strained Trump’s relationship with Thune. Trump on Wednesday declined to say whether Thune was still the right person to lead Senate Republicans, telling reporters only that “we’ll find out.”
In response, Thune underscored on Thursday that Senate leadership was determined by its members, not the president.
“He doesn’t vote in our elections,” Thune said.
The dispute also comes as Republicans prepare to defend their Senate majority in the November midterm elections, with Bannon arguing Thune’s leadership is putting the conference at risk.
“Thune’s clueless. He’s going to lose the Senate,” Bannon warned. “His guy’s down 9 points in North Carolina. Right now, in polling, we’re going to lose North Carolina, Ohio, and Maine, and … maybe Alaska, maybe Iowa. And that’s not including, we’re not going to take back Georgia, Michigan, toss up.”
Bannon suggested that Thune would have to be removed to save the Senate.
TRUMP FLOATS WITHDRAWING TODD BLANCHE NOMINATION ‘TEMPORARILY’ AMID CORNYN STANDOFF
“I think that’s why it’s going to be dramatic. There has to be a dramatic resolution,” he said. “So it can’t be repaired. The president’s tried.”
Republicans close to the White House cautioned that Trump is unlikely to move against Thune until Blanche’s nomination is resolved, and more likely not until after the midterm elections. One Republican added that Thune’s fundraising ability could ultimately preserve his position if Republicans retain control of the Senate.