Senate committee advances Todd Blanche’s attorney general nomination
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche cleared a crucial procedural hurdle Tuesday morning when the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced his nomination to lead the Justice Department permanently in a 12-10, party-line vote. The vote comes after Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) said Monday that they would vote for Blanche during the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Tuesday meeting, resolving an impasse that forced the […]
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche cleared a crucial procedural hurdle Tuesday morning when the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced his nomination to lead the Justice Department permanently in a 12-10, party-line vote.
The vote comes after Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) said Monday that they would vote for Blanche during the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Tuesday meeting, resolving an impasse that forced the panel to postpone consideration of his nomination last week. The committee considered Blanche’s nomination as its only agenda item ahead of the start of the August recess later this week.
” data-large-file=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/senate-committee-advances-todd-blanches-attorney-general-nomination.webp?w=696″ src=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/senate-committee-advances-todd-blanches-attorney-general-nomination.webp” alt=”Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, center, and Vice President JD Vance, right, attend a Cabinet meeting.” class=”wp-image-4673567″ srcset=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/senate-committee-advances-todd-blanches-attorney-general-nomination.webp 1024w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/senate-committee-advances-todd-blanches-attorney-general-nomination.webp?resize=300,200 300w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/senate-committee-advances-todd-blanches-attorney-general-nomination.webp?resize=768,512 768w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/senate-committee-advances-todd-blanches-attorney-general-nomination.webp?resize=150,100 150w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/senate-committee-advances-todd-blanches-attorney-general-nomination.webp?resize=696,464 696w” sizes=”(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px”>Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, center, and Vice President JD Vance, right, attend a Cabinet meeting on Friday, July 31, 2026, at Camp David, the presidential retreat, near Thurmont, Maryland. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Cornyn and Tillis’s support rebound followed a late-Sunday agreement under which the DOJ formally terminated a controversial “anti-weaponization fund” and clarified the scope of tax audit protections included in a May settlement between President Donald Trump and the IRS.
“We want to express our gratitude to Mr. Blanche and his staff for working with us on this, and we look forward to voting to advance his nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee soon,” Cornyn and Tillis said in a joint statement Monday.
The committee vote positions Blanche for confirmation by the full Senate later this week, before senators leave Washington until Sept. 14.
Cornyn and Tillis had demanded binding assurances that the roughly $1.8 billion fund could not be revived and that protections from IRS audits would not extend beyond the plaintiffs in Trump’s lawsuit. The proposed fund was intended to compensate people who claimed they had been unfairly targeted by the DOJ, prompting concerns that Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot defendants could receive payments.
In a written order issued late Sunday, Blanche said no members had been appointed to administer the fund, no money had been transferred, and no claims had been paid.
My team and I have met with committee members and Senators over the past several weeks and addressed any concerns or outstanding questions. We have enjoyed good faith discussions, and as a result issue the following order and update with regard to the May IRS settlement. The… pic.twitter.com/U6hs15kw2D
— Acting AG Todd Blanche (@DAGToddBlanche) August 3, 2026
The department also clarified that the audit agreement applies retroactively to claims open when the settlement was reached, does not cover future tax filings, and is limited to Trump, two of his sons, and the Trump Organization.
Democrats spoke for nearly two hours before the vote, arguing that the agreement left open the possibility of future payments to Jan. 6 defendants and would not bind Trump or other parties to the IRS settlement. Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) dismissed the arrangement as “all hat and no cattle,” while Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) called Blanche’s documents “a sham” and said he would introduce a resolution rejecting the tax agreement as a precedent.
Blanche’s nomination appeared in jeopardy after the committee postponed a vote scheduled for Thursday. Trump subsequently threatened to withdraw the nomination and suggested on Saturday that he could revive the compensation proposal, or ask Congress to create it through legislation.
Tillis responded over the weekend that such a move could derail a nominee he otherwise considered qualified, adding that he hoped the dispute could be resolved by Tuesday.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) scheduled Tuesday’s meeting to give the White House more time to secure the necessary votes. His office said Friday that Grassley wanted Blanche confirmed before the recess, praising his record of “restoring law and order and keeping Americans safe.”
Blanche, Trump’s former criminal defense attorney, joined the DOJ as deputy attorney general before becoming acting attorney general following Pam Bondi’s ouster in April.
