Todd Blanche’s two-day confirmation hearing for Attorney General was, by any measure, a lot. There was the Freudian slip where he introduced himself as Trump’s lawyer before catching himself. There was Senator Hirono correcting him on the spot when he confidently asserted that judges had sided with DOJ on voter list lawsuits — they hadn’t, including Trump appointees. There was losing his composure at Cory Booker. There was losing his composure at Dick Durbin. There was Adam Schiff asking, “what happened to you, Todd Blanche?”
And now, in his written responses to questions for the record, Blanche is basically calling two United States senators liars.
Here’s the background. Before the hearing, Blanche met privately with several senators, including Dick Durbin and Richard Blumenthal. Each came away saying that behind closed doors, Blanche admitted that the $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” — the DOJ slush fund Blanche personally created to compensate people claiming they were wronged by the government, including January 6 rioters, which drew bipartisan condemnation and was ultimately tabled after a federal judge opened an inquiry into whether DOJ had committed fraud on the court — was “a mistake.” Durbin told reporters as much immediately after their meeting.
Then came Blanche’s written responses to the committee’s questions for the record, which were released publicly this week. On page 8, Durbin asks directly, “In our meeting this week, you said, ‘I made a mistake’ by creating this slush fund. Do you stand by this characterization?”
Blanche’s response, “I contest the accuracy of this statement.”
Durbin’s reaction was measured and pointed, “I verified it with several of my staffers who were present. I stand by it.” He also offered a theory for why Blanche might be walking it back, “That’s not proper MAGA talk.”
Blumenthal, for his part, was even more specific. “He said it to me in my office,” the senator told HuffPost. “He acknowledged that it was a mistake. He said, basically, he took the blame for it.” Blumenthal recalled Blanche even having a name for it, “It will be known as the Blanche Slush Fund,” the senator said Blanche told him. “He was taking responsibility for it. He was not proud of it, in other words.”
“That’s not proper MAGA talk” may be the most clarifying thing anyone has said about this entire confirmation battle. Blanche privately knows the slush fund was a disaster, but he publicly cannot say so. And somewhere in the gulf between reality and his public statement is the whole story of what he’s become — a man who, as his former SDNY colleagues have noted, was once regarded as fundamentally decent, and who now finds himself calling two United States senators liars in written congressional testimony because admitting a mistake on the record is too dangerous for his standing with one man.
Earlier: Paging Dr. Freud: Todd Blanche Introduces Himself As Trump’s Lawyer At His AG Confirmation Hearing
Todd Blanche’s Former SDNY Colleagues Vouched For Him Last Year. They Won’t Make That Mistake Again.
Todd Blanche’s Confirmation Hearing Just Got More Complicated
Former DOJ Prosecutors To Senate: Blanche Took The Same Oath We Did. But He Didn’t Keep It.
Senator Whitehouse Would Like To Tell You Exactly What He Thinks Of Todd Blanche
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Bluesky @Kathryn1
The post Todd Blanche’s Confirmation Strategy: Call Two Senate Judiciary Committee Members Liars appeared first on Above the Law.
Todd Blanche’s two-day confirmation hearing for Attorney General was, by any measure, a lot. There was the Freudian slip where he introduced himself as Trump’s lawyer before catching himself. There was Senator Hirono correcting him on the spot when he confidently asserted that judges had sided with DOJ on voter list lawsuits — they hadn’t, including Trump appointees. There was losing his composure at Cory Booker. There was losing his composure at Dick Durbin. There was Adam Schiff asking, “what happened to you, Todd Blanche?”
And now, in his written responses to questions for the record, Blanche is basically calling two United States senators liars.
Here’s the background. Before the hearing, Blanche met privately with several senators, including Dick Durbin and Richard Blumenthal. Each came away saying that behind closed doors, Blanche admitted that the $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” — the DOJ slush fund Blanche personally created to compensate people claiming they were wronged by the government, including January 6 rioters, which drew bipartisan condemnation and was ultimately tabled after a federal judge opened an inquiry into whether DOJ had committed fraud on the court — was “a mistake.” Durbin told reporters as much immediately after their meeting.
Then came Blanche’s written responses to the committee’s questions for the record, which were released publicly this week. On page 8, Durbin asks directly, “In our meeting this week, you said, ‘I made a mistake’ by creating this slush fund. Do you stand by this characterization?”
Blanche’s response, “I contest the accuracy of this statement.”
Durbin’s reaction was measured and pointed, “I verified it with several of my staffers who were present. I stand by it.” He also offered a theory for why Blanche might be walking it back, “That’s not proper MAGA talk.”
Blumenthal, for his part, was even more specific. “He said it to me in my office,” the senator told HuffPost. “He acknowledged that it was a mistake. He said, basically, he took the blame for it.” Blumenthal recalled Blanche even having a name for it, “It will be known as the Blanche Slush Fund,” the senator said Blanche told him. “He was taking responsibility for it. He was not proud of it, in other words.”
“That’s not proper MAGA talk” may be the most clarifying thing anyone has said about this entire confirmation battle. Blanche privately knows the slush fund was a disaster, but he publicly cannot say so. And somewhere in the gulf between reality and his public statement is the whole story of what he’s become — a man who, as his former SDNY colleagues have noted, was once regarded as fundamentally decent, and who now finds himself calling two United States senators liars in written congressional testimony because admitting a mistake on the record is too dangerous for his standing with one man.
Earlier: Paging Dr. Freud: Todd Blanche Introduces Himself As Trump’s Lawyer At His AG Confirmation Hearing
Todd Blanche’s Former SDNY Colleagues Vouched For Him Last Year. They Won’t Make That Mistake Again.
Todd Blanche’s Confirmation Hearing Just Got More Complicated
Former DOJ Prosecutors To Senate: Blanche Took The Same Oath We Did. But He Didn’t Keep It.
Senator Whitehouse Would Like To Tell You Exactly What He Thinks Of Todd Blanche
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Bluesky @Kathryn1
