{"id":156608,"date":"2026-07-13T14:38:26","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T22:38:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/07\/13\/well-this-doesnt-help-todd-blanche\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T14:38:26","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T22:38:26","slug":"well-this-doesnt-help-todd-blanche","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/07\/13\/well-this-doesnt-help-todd-blanche\/","title":{"rendered":"Well, This Doesn\u2019t Help Todd Blanche"},"content":{"rendered":"

Todd Blanche\u2019s Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing was already shaping up to be a genuine fight<\/a>. Now that there\u2019s a Lindsey Graham-sized hole on the Judiciary Committee, well, that math\u2019s gotten tighter.<\/p>\n

Lindsey Graham died Saturday<\/a>, removing from the Judiciary Committee one of the most devoted Trump loyalists in the Senate, and he will be conspicuously absent when Blanche sits down for what\u2019s expected to be a bruising two-part hearing this week. \u201cHe was engaged and a powerful voice on the committee when he would participate in these high-profile matters,\u201d said Mike Fragoso, who served as Graham\u2019s chief nominations counsel during his time as Judiciary chairman, to Bloomberg Law<\/a>. \u201cHe would\u2019ve been a defender of Blanche at his tenure at the Department of Justice, and he won\u2019t be there for that this week, which is unfortunate.\u201d <\/p>\n

Blanche is going to need every defender he can get. The confirmation battle has already drawn opposition from the New York Times editorial board<\/a>, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse<\/a>, hundreds of DOJ alumni<\/a>, and even defenders like Bill Barr<\/a> come across backhanded at best. And just today the New York City Bar Association wrote<\/a>, his actions, both as Deputy Attorney General and as Acting Attorney General, have \u201crepeatedly demonstrated that his primary loyalty is not to the United States Constitution or the rule of law but to President Donald J. Trump, whom Mr. Blanche previously represented as a private attorney and whose personal interests he has continued to protect. As a result, his actions have been detrimental to the Department of Justice and the rule of law. Specifically, Mr. Blanche has compromised the integrity and independence of the Department he has been nominated to lead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not easy stuff to just brush off. <\/p>\n

But if Blanche can rally the Republicans, his nomination will get out of Commttee. \u201cUnanimous Republican support still means a nominee will be voted out of committee, and a single Republican no vote still means they won\u2019t,\u201d Emory University law professor Sara Zdeb told Bloomberg Law. That puts the spotlight on Committee member Thom Tillis, who previously utilized his power on the committee to squash the DOJ investigation into Jerome Powell. But, according to social media, Tillis appears warm to Blanche\u2019s nomination.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

It was good to meet with Acting Attorney General Blanche to discuss his nomination to serve as the next Attorney General. I appreciated the opportunity to hear his vision for the Department of Justice and discuss the important work that lies ahead. pic.twitter.com\/xctAQIIvbR<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Senator Thom Tillis (@SenThomTillis) June 25, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster is expected to move quickly to have someone fill out the remainder of Graham\u2019s term. \u201cBy all accounts the governor will move quickly to name a temporary replacement,\u201d Zdeb said. So, if and when it goes to a full Senate vote, the GOP will still have a slender margin.<\/p>\n

But what Blanche is walking into<\/a> this week is a confirmation hearing where Democrats will press him on the Epstein files<\/a>, the slush fund<\/a>, and his vow not to conduct politically motivated investigations<\/a>. And he won\u2019t have Graham in his corner during the process. <\/p>\n

Earlier:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Former DOJ Prosecutors To Senate: Blanche Took The Same Oath We Did. He Didn\u2019t Keep It.<\/a><\/p>\n

Senator Whitehouse Would Like To Tell You Exactly What He Thinks Of Todd Blanche<\/a><\/p>\n

Bill Barr Would Like The Senate To Know: Confirm Todd Blanche Or The Hostage Gets It<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2018Todd Blanche Is Unfit For Office,\u2019 Says The New York Times Editorial Board<\/a><\/p>\n

Todd Blanche Got The Attorney General Nomination. Getting Confirmed Is Another Matter.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of\u00a0The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of\u00a0Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email\u00a0her<\/a>\u00a0with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Bluesky\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post Well, This Doesn\u2019t Help Todd Blanche<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Todd Blanche\u2019s Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing was already shaping up to be a genuine fight<\/a>. Now that there\u2019s a Lindsey Graham-sized hole on the Judiciary Committee, well, that math\u2019s gotten tighter.<\/p>\n

Lindsey Graham died Saturday<\/a>, removing from the Judiciary Committee one of the most devoted Trump loyalists in the Senate, and he will be conspicuously absent when Blanche sits down for what\u2019s expected to be a bruising two-part hearing this week. \u201cHe was engaged and a powerful voice on the committee when he would participate in these high-profile matters,\u201d said Mike Fragoso, who served as Graham\u2019s chief nominations counsel during his time as Judiciary chairman, to Bloomberg Law<\/a>. \u201cHe would\u2019ve been a defender of Blanche at his tenure at the Department of Justice, and he won\u2019t be there for that this week, which is unfortunate.\u201d <\/p>\n

Blanche is going to need every defender he can get. The confirmation battle has already drawn opposition from the New York Times editorial board<\/a>, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse<\/a>, hundreds of DOJ alumni<\/a>, and even defenders like Bill Barr<\/a> come across backhanded at best. And just today the New York City Bar Association wrote<\/a>, his actions, both as Deputy Attorney General and as Acting Attorney General, have \u201crepeatedly demonstrated that his primary loyalty is not to the United States Constitution or the rule of law but to President Donald J. Trump, whom Mr. Blanche previously represented as a private attorney and whose personal interests he has continued to protect. As a result, his actions have been detrimental to the Department of Justice and the rule of law. Specifically, Mr. Blanche has compromised the integrity and independence of the Department he has been nominated to lead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not easy stuff to just brush off. <\/p>\n

But if Blanche can rally the Republicans, his nomination will get out of Commttee. \u201cUnanimous Republican support still means a nominee will be voted out of committee, and a single Republican no vote still means they won\u2019t,\u201d Emory University law professor Sara Zdeb told Bloomberg Law. That puts the spotlight on Committee member Thom Tillis, who previously utilized his power on the committee to squash the DOJ investigation into Jerome Powell. But, according to social media, Tillis appears warm to Blanche\u2019s nomination.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

It was good to meet with Acting Attorney General Blanche to discuss his nomination to serve as the next Attorney General. I appreciated the opportunity to hear his vision for the Department of Justice and discuss the important work that lies ahead. pic.twitter.com\/xctAQIIvbR<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Senator Thom Tillis (@SenThomTillis) June 25, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster is expected to move quickly to have someone fill out the remainder of Graham\u2019s term. \u201cBy all accounts the governor will move quickly to name a temporary replacement,\u201d Zdeb said. So, if and when it goes to a full Senate vote, the GOP will still have a slender margin.<\/p>\n

But what Blanche is walking into<\/a> this week is a confirmation hearing where Democrats will press him on the Epstein files<\/a>, the slush fund<\/a>, and his vow not to conduct politically motivated investigations<\/a>. And he won\u2019t have Graham in his corner during the process. <\/p>\n

Earlier:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Former DOJ Prosecutors To Senate: Blanche Took The Same Oath We Did. He Didn\u2019t Keep It.<\/a><\/p>\n

Senator Whitehouse Would Like To Tell You Exactly What He Thinks Of Todd Blanche<\/a><\/p>\n

Bill Barr Would Like The Senate To Know: Confirm Todd Blanche Or The Hostage Gets It<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2018Todd Blanche Is Unfit For Office,\u2019 Says The New York Times Editorial Board<\/a><\/p>\n

Todd Blanche Got The Attorney General Nomination. Getting Confirmed Is Another Matter.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of\u00a0The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of\u00a0Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email\u00a0her<\/a>\u00a0with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Bluesky\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post Well, This Doesn\u2019t Help Todd Blanche<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Todd Blanche\u2019s Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing was already shaping up to be a genuine fight. Now that there\u2019s a Lindsey Graham-sized hole on the Judiciary Committee, well, that math\u2019s gotten tighter. Lindsey Graham died Saturday, removing from the Judiciary Committee one of the most devoted Trump loyalists in the Senate, and he will be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":156609,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-156608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_5243-1-scaled-e1623338814705-620x568-bukCij.jpg?fit=620%2C568&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=156608"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156608\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/156609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=156608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=156608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=156608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}