WASHINGTON, Aug 8 – The U.S. Senate has narrowly confirmed Todd Blanche as attorney general, giving President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer permanent control of the Justice Department after an unusually difficult confirmation battle that exposed divisions within the Republican Party over the department’s independence.
The Senate voted 50-49 in the early hours of Saturday to approve Blanche’s nomination. Every Democrat voted against him, while Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska joined them in opposition. The result makes Blanche the second attorney general confirmed during Trump’s return to the White House.
Blanche had already been running the Justice Department in an acting capacity, but his confirmation gives him a full mandate to oversee the sprawling federal law enforcement agency and advance the administration’s legal priorities.
The vote came after weeks of uncertainty surrounding Blanche’s nomination, particularly over a controversial settlement involving Trump, the Internal Revenue Service and a proposed $1.8 billion compensation fund. Republican senators had raised concerns that the arrangement could improperly benefit Trump and his allies while weakening safeguards surrounding federal tax enforcement.
Blanche ultimately secured enough Republican support after putting commitments in writing that the Justice Department would abandon the proposed compensation fund and limit another part of the agreement that would have protected Trump and members of his family from certain IRS audits.
Following the vote, Blanche said he was deeply honored by the confidence Trump had placed in him and thanked senators for working late into the night to complete the confirmation process.
His confirmation places a close Trump ally at the head of an institution that has traditionally emphasized its independence from the White House. That relationship was a central issue throughout the Senate debate, with Democrats warning that Blanche’s previous role as Trump’s criminal defense lawyer could make it difficult for him to separate his responsibilities as attorney general from the president’s political interests.
Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the senior Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, argued that the country needed an attorney general capable of confronting misconduct regardless of who was responsible. He characterized Blanche’s confirmation as a serious mistake and urged senators not to put themselves on the wrong side of history.
Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana became the decisive Republican vote for Blanche after previously expressing concerns about the Justice Department settlement. Cassidy said his decision was not a judgment on Trump, but rather an assessment of Blanche’s ability to lead the department under the circumstances.
Cassidy also argued that Blanche’s experience representing Trump could give him a unique understanding of the president and potentially allow him to push back when White House demands run against legal limits.
The senator’s support was particularly significant because Cassidy had lost his Republican primary to a candidate backed by Trump. His decision helped clear the final obstacle to Blanche’s confirmation.
Controversial settlement nearly derailed Blanche’s nomination
The biggest threat to Blanche’s nomination came from within his own party. Republican senators John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina pressed the Justice Department over a proposed settlement connected to Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS.
The agreement had included a plan to establish what was described as an “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” worth roughly $1.8 billion. The proposed fund was intended to compensate people who believed they had been unfairly treated by the criminal justice system. Critics, however, questioned whether it could have directed substantial financial benefits toward Trump’s political allies, including people who were involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Another provision involving protection from IRS tax audits for Trump and members of his family also generated concern among Republican lawmakers.
The controversy became serious enough to threaten Blanche’s confirmation. Under pressure from Republican senators, he agreed to formally rescind the compensation fund and address concerns surrounding the tax provisions.
That agreement helped unlock consideration of his nomination in the Senate Judiciary Committee and eventually paved the way for the full Senate vote. Even after the deal, however, some Republican senators remained opposed.
Murkowski announced Friday that she would vote against Blanche, joining Collins. She said the country needed an attorney general who could serve as a check on what she described as the administration’s worst impulses.
Their opposition highlighted the unusual political circumstances surrounding the confirmation. Blanche was not rejected because of a lack of legal experience. Instead, much of the debate centered on whether his close personal and professional relationship with Trump would influence how he exercised the enormous authority of the attorney general.
Blanche previously served as a federal prosecutor in New York before leaving government and becoming one of Trump’s most prominent defense attorneys. He represented Trump during the former president’s New York hush money case and defended him in federal criminal investigations brought by the Justice Department during the Biden administration.
Blanche has repeatedly argued that his experience representing Trump gave him a firsthand understanding of what he believes was the misuse of federal law enforcement against the former president.
That background later helped propel him into the Justice Department. Blanche joined the department as deputy attorney general under Pam Bondi, eventually becoming one of the administration’s most visible legal officials.
He took over as acting attorney general after Trump removed Bondi from the position in April. His elevation came as the Justice Department was undergoing a major transformation under the Trump administration.
Blanche quickly became involved in several politically sensitive investigations and policy decisions. His supporters say his previous experience as a prosecutor, combined with his familiarity with Trump, makes him particularly suited to managing the administration’s legal agenda while explaining the limits of federal law to the White House.
Republican lawmakers have also praised Blanche’s record on issues including violent crime, illegal immigration, drug trafficking and criminal cartels.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, the Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, strongly backed Blanche before the vote. Grassley said Blanche had led the Justice Department with distinction and described him as the right person for the job.
Democrats, however, have pointed to Blanche’s close relationship with Trump and argued that the department has become increasingly focused on the president’s political priorities.
Blanche inherits a Justice Department transformed under Trump
Blanche’s confirmation comes at a consequential moment for the Justice Department, which has experienced significant personnel changes since Trump returned to office.
Thousands of department employees have left through firings, resignations and voluntary departures. The changes have affected prosecutors and other career officials, adding to concerns among Democrats and some former Justice Department officials about institutional independence.
The department has also pursued investigations involving several people viewed by Trump as political opponents.
One of the most prominent cases involves former FBI Director James Comey. After Blanche became the department’s acting head, federal prosecutors moved to indict Comey over a social media photograph involving seashells arranged in the numerical sequence “86 47,” which prosecutors said represented a threat against Trump.
Comey’s legal team has challenged the prosecution and sought dismissal of the case. His lawyers have accused the Justice Department of misleading judges, submitting documents containing false statements and withholding important information. Those allegations remain contested.
Blanche has also placed Joseph diGenova, a former Justice Department prosecutor who served during the Reagan administration, in charge of a Florida-based investigation examining whether former law enforcement and intelligence officials worked together over several years to undermine Trump.
The investigation focuses on allegations surrounding the origins of earlier probes into Trump’s campaign and possible connections to the broader controversy involving Russia. It remains unclear whether the inquiry will result in criminal charges.
Blanche will also have to oversee the department’s response to a range of other issues, including immigration enforcement, organized crime, drug trafficking, federal prosecutions and disputes over executive power.
His supporters believe his unusual background gives him an advantage because he understands Trump’s thinking and has already earned the president’s trust. They argue that this relationship could allow Blanche to explain legal constraints to the White House more effectively than an attorney general without direct experience with Trump.
Critics see the same relationship as the central weakness of his appointment. They argue that an attorney general who previously served as the president’s personal criminal defense lawyer faces an unusually difficult test in demonstrating independence from the person who nominated him.
The Senate’s 50-49 vote does not resolve that debate. Instead, it places Blanche in a position where his decisions will likely face intense scrutiny from both parties, federal judges and career Justice Department officials.
For Trump, the confirmation provides a permanent attorney general who has spent years defending him and who has already demonstrated a willingness to pursue the administration’s priorities from inside the Justice Department.
For Blanche, the challenge now moves beyond confirmation. He must demonstrate that he can enforce federal law while maintaining public confidence that the Justice Department serves the law rather than any individual president.
That balance will define his tenure as attorney general and could determine how the department is viewed during one of the most politically charged periods in its history.