Two Republican senators who were stalling on Donald Trump‘s pick for Attorney General, Todd Blanche, have now given the green light.
Trump had earlier issued a direct warning to Senators Thom Tillis and John Cornyn on Saturday, saying their continued opposition could prompt him to revive the controversial “Anti-Weaponization Fund.”
The $1.8 billion proposal was designed to compensate people who claim they were politically targeted or subjected to lawfare by previous administrations.
Republican holdouts over Todd Blanche’s confirmation as Attorney General, Sen. John Cornyn of Texas and Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, have now said they’ll vote for him.
Cornyn and Tillis, who are both leaving the Senate after the midterm elections, had delayed Blanche’s confirmation over concerns surrounding the controversial “Anti-Weaponization Fund.”
The proposal, initially announced as part of an IRS lawsuit settlement, was intended to compensate individuals who claim they suffered political persecution under previous governments.
The two senators withheld their support while demanding binding written assurances that Trump’s administration would permanently abandon plans for the fund.
GOP Senators Reverse Course On Blanche
However, the senators released a joint statement Monday morning announcing their change of course after the DOJ issued an order rescinding the controversial fund.
“From the outset, we were clear that we needed a written document addressing our concerns on the IRS audit agreement and the anti-weaponization fund that included constraining the scope of audit protection by limiting it to the parties of the Settlement Agreement and legally ending the anti-weaponization fund,” the statement read.
They also said they were satisfied with the DOJ’s binding written order confirming that the tax protections created under the settlement with Trump apply only to the specific individuals and entities named in the lawsuit.
“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,” the senators added.
Donald Trump Threatened To Revive The Controversial Fund
3The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to vote on Blanche’s nomination Tuesday morning after Cornyn and Tillis postponed the confirmation vote last Thursday. Trump escalated the standoff on Saturday by warning that if his pick was not confirmed, he would keep him in his acting role while pushing Congress to revive the controversial measure.
“If Senators Cornyn and Tillis, both upset because I wouldn’t Endorse them (they lost, and quit, respectively!), aren’t going to approve Todd Blanche, one of the most respected professionals, according to everybody, in the Country, to be the United States Attorney General, then I will keep Todd as Acting A.G., and push hard to get the Anti-Weaponization Bill, which takes care of those who have been so badly treated by the Crooked Joe Biden (and Obuma!) Administration (I get nothing, although I was treated horribly!), PASSED,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“Todd Blanche was a voice of reason!” the president added. “It will immediately be back on the table, and I will get it done.”
Senator Calls Out Trump’s Shift
Trump had previously declared during a Cabinet meeting that the proposed legislation was “dead,” making his latest threat appear to reverse that position.
His remarks sparked a public standoff, with Tillis signaling he would not back down in a response posted on X.
“Despite comments as late as yesterday that the fund is dead, President Trump clearly intends to resurrect the payout pot for punks either by inappropriately establishing another bogus fund or pushing Congress to vote for a bill that the majority of Republicans in the Senate would be against,” Tillis wrote.
“It’s unfortunate that Todd Blanche, who I consider qualified for the job, will not be confirmed because of this reversal. Hopefully, we can resolve this by Tuesday,” he added.
Donald Trump Defends Controversial Fund
3The proposal has remained highly controversial, with critics arguing it would create an unnecessary slush fund that could benefit Trump and his supporters.
Others warned that its broad eligibility criteria could allow even some January 6 rioters to seek compensation.
Speaking during a Cabinet meeting at Camp David on Saturday, Trump lamented the decision to abandon the proposal.
“Well, it is dead, but you know, I wish it weren’t,” he said. “To be honest with you, I think people were horribly treated, horribly abused … and I’d like to see them compensated for the pain. They lost their families. They committed suicide.”
The president continued, “People that were very successful that wanted to go to a rally or an event, and ended up spending the rest of their lives in horror. So, I mean, you can say what you want about the fund, and they’ve agreed to not have a fund. But there are a lot of people that are very upset about it.”