Trump may pull Blanche nomination to sidestep John Cornyn
President Donald Trump says he may temporarily withdraw Todd Blanche's attorney general nomination to wait out Senate holdouts, including John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina. The senators are blocking confirmation over a controversial compensation fund. Trump says he could renominate Blanche after both leave office in January.
Key Takeaways
- Trump is weighing a temporary withdrawal of Todd Blanche's attorney general nomination amid a Senate stall.
- John Cornyn and Thom Tillis are withholding Judiciary Committee support over an abandoned $1.8bn compensation fund.
- Both senators' terms expire in January, and Trump says he could renominate Blanche after they leave.
- Blanche remains acting attorney general and met the holdouts Thursday without a clear deal.
The standoff has turned a routine confirmation fight into a high-stakes loyalty test inside the Republican Party. Blanche, Trump's former personal lawyer, has served as acting attorney general since April and needs unanimous Republican support on the Senate Judiciary Committee to advance.
That path is blocked. Cornyn and Tillis want written assurances the Justice Department will not revive a disputed payout scheme later. For more odd political showdowns, see our Bizarre World coverage.
Why is John Cornyn blocking Todd Blanche?
According to BBC News, Cornyn and Tillis are holding out over a proposed $1.8bn (£1.3bn) "anti-weaponisation fund." The fund was announced earlier this year as part of settling Trump's lawsuit against the IRS over the leak of his tax returns.
It would have let Trump allies seek compensation for what they call politically motivated prosecutions by prior administrations. The deal drew bipartisan backlash. Blanche, who negotiated it, later abandoned the fund, and a federal judge separately blocked it over ethical concerns.
Cornyn and Tillis now want Blanche to put in writing that the department will not resurrect the fund. The Trump administration has not announced that commitment. Tillis said the setback suggests "somebody who wants to enable [the fund] at the right time," calling that "unacceptable."
What did Trump say about revenge timing?
Trump framed the delay as a calendar play against the holdouts. "I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd's name, if they do not do the right thing, and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office," he said.
NPR reports Trump is willing to hold the nomination until January, when he expects an easier Senate calculation. Cornyn lost his Republican primary to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, whom Trump endorsed. Tillis's term also ends in January, and polls show Democrat Roy Cooper leading in North Carolina.
Could waiting out John Cornyn backfire?
Trump's wait-them-out strategy faces an obvious risk: Democrats could reclaim the Senate majority in November's midterms, making a fresh Blanche confirmation far harder. Even then, Blanche could theoretically keep serving in an acting role while the process continues.
Most federal vacancies can be filled in acting capacity for up to 210 days, and an interim official may continue while confirmation remains pending. Blanche met Cornyn and Tillis on Thursday, but it is unclear whether they reached any agreement.
The episode also echoes earlier Trump nominee turbulence, including the quickly dropped Matt Gaetz attorney general plan and failed CDC director picks. For now, the Blanche file sits between a written fund pledge Cornyn demands and a president signaling he would rather run out the clock than concede.