{"id":158061,"date":"2026-07-24T06:19:53","date_gmt":"2026-07-24T14:19:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/07\/24\/todd-blanches-confirmation-strategy-call-two-senate-judiciary-committee-members-liars\/"},"modified":"2026-07-24T06:19:53","modified_gmt":"2026-07-24T14:19:53","slug":"todd-blanches-confirmation-strategy-call-two-senate-judiciary-committee-members-liars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/07\/24\/todd-blanches-confirmation-strategy-call-two-senate-judiciary-committee-members-liars\/","title":{"rendered":"Todd Blanche\u2019s Confirmation Strategy: Call Two Senate Judiciary Committee Members Liars"},"content":{"rendered":"

Todd Blanche\u2019s two-day confirmation hearing for Attorney General<\/a> was, by any measure, a lot<\/a>. There was the Freudian slip<\/a> where he introduced himself as Trump\u2019s lawyer before catching himself. There was Senator Hirono correcting him on the spot<\/a> when he confidently asserted that judges had sided with DOJ on voter list lawsuits \u2014 they hadn\u2019t, including Trump appointees. There was losing his composure at Cory Booker<\/a>. There was losing his composure at Dick Durbin<\/a>. There was Adam Schiff asking, \u201cwhat happened to you, Todd Blanche?\u201d <\/p>\n

And now, in his written responses to questions for the record, Blanche is basically calling two United States senators liars.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s 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 \u201cAnti-Weaponization Fund\u201d \u2014 the DOJ slush fund<\/a> Blanche personally created to compensate people claiming they were wronged by the government, including January 6 rioters<\/a>, which drew bipartisan condemnation and was ultimately tabled<\/a> after a federal judge opened an inquiry into whether DOJ had committed fraud on the court \u2014 was \u201ca mistake.\u201d Durbin told reporters<\/a> as much immediately after their meeting.<\/p>\n

Then came Blanche\u2019s written responses to the committee\u2019s questions for the record, which were released publicly this week. On page 8, Durbin asks directly, \u201cIn our meeting this week, you said, \u2018I made a mistake\u2019 by creating this slush fund. Do you stand by this characterization?\u201d<\/p>\n

Blanche\u2019s response, \u201cI contest the accuracy of this statement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Durbin\u2019s reaction was measured and pointed, \u201cI verified it with several of my staffers who were present. I stand by it.\u201d He also offered a theory for why Blanche might be walking it back, \u201cThat\u2019s not proper MAGA talk.\u201d<\/p>\n

Blumenthal, for his part, was even more specific. \u201cHe said it to me in my office,\u201d the senator told HuffPost<\/a>. \u201cHe acknowledged that it was a mistake. He said, basically, he took the blame for it.\u201d Blumenthal recalled Blanche even having a name for it, \u201cIt will be known as the Blanche Slush Fund,\u201d the senator said Blanche told him. \u201cHe was taking responsibility for it. He was not proud of it, in other words.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not proper MAGA talk\u201d 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\u2019s become \u2014 a man who, as his former SDNY colleagues have noted<\/a>, 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.<\/p>\n

Earlier:<\/strong> Paging Dr. Freud: Todd Blanche Introduces Himself As Trump\u2019s Lawyer At His AG Confirmation Hearing<\/a>
Todd Blanche\u2019s Former SDNY Colleagues Vouched For Him Last Year. They Won\u2019t Make That Mistake Again.<\/a>
Todd Blanche\u2019s Confirmation Hearing Just Got More Complicated<\/a>
Former DOJ Prosecutors To Senate: Blanche Took The Same Oath We Did. But He Didn\u2019t Keep It.<\/a>
Senator Whitehouse Would Like To Tell You Exactly What He Thinks Of Todd Blanche<\/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 Todd Blanche\u2019s Confirmation Strategy: Call Two Senate Judiciary Committee Members Liars<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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

\"\"
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t(Photo by Anna Moneymaker\/Getty Images)\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Todd Blanche\u2019s two-day confirmation hearing for Attorney General<\/a> was, by any measure, a lot<\/a>. There was the Freudian slip<\/a> where he introduced himself as Trump\u2019s lawyer before catching himself. There was Senator Hirono correcting him on the spot<\/a> when he confidently asserted that judges had sided with DOJ on voter list lawsuits \u2014 they hadn\u2019t, including Trump appointees. There was losing his composure at Cory Booker<\/a>. There was losing his composure at Dick Durbin<\/a>. There was Adam Schiff asking, \u201cwhat happened to you, Todd Blanche?\u201d <\/p>\n

And now, in his written responses to questions for the record, Blanche is basically calling two United States senators liars.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s 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 \u201cAnti-Weaponization Fund\u201d \u2014 the DOJ slush fund<\/a> Blanche personally created to compensate people claiming they were wronged by the government, including January 6 rioters<\/a>, which drew bipartisan condemnation and was ultimately tabled<\/a> after a federal judge opened an inquiry into whether DOJ had committed fraud on the court \u2014 was \u201ca mistake.\u201d Durbin told reporters<\/a> as much immediately after their meeting.<\/p>\n

Then came Blanche\u2019s written responses to the committee\u2019s questions for the record, which were released publicly this week. On page 8, Durbin asks directly, \u201cIn our meeting this week, you said, \u2018I made a mistake\u2019 by creating this slush fund. Do you stand by this characterization?\u201d<\/p>\n

Blanche\u2019s response, \u201cI contest the accuracy of this statement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Durbin\u2019s reaction was measured and pointed, \u201cI verified it with several of my staffers who were present. I stand by it.\u201d He also offered a theory for why Blanche might be walking it back, \u201cThat\u2019s not proper MAGA talk.\u201d<\/p>\n

Blumenthal, for his part, was even more specific. \u201cHe said it to me in my office,\u201d the senator told HuffPost<\/a>. \u201cHe acknowledged that it was a mistake. He said, basically, he took the blame for it.\u201d Blumenthal recalled Blanche even having a name for it, \u201cIt will be known as the Blanche Slush Fund,\u201d the senator said Blanche told him. \u201cHe was taking responsibility for it. He was not proud of it, in other words.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not proper MAGA talk\u201d 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\u2019s become \u2014 a man who, as his former SDNY colleagues have noted<\/a>, 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.<\/p>\n

Earlier:<\/strong> Paging Dr. Freud: Todd Blanche Introduces Himself As Trump\u2019s Lawyer At His AG Confirmation Hearing<\/a>
Todd Blanche\u2019s Former SDNY Colleagues Vouched For Him Last Year. They Won\u2019t Make That Mistake Again.<\/a>
Todd Blanche\u2019s Confirmation Hearing Just Got More Complicated<\/a>
Former DOJ Prosecutors To Senate: Blanche Took The Same Oath We Did. But He Didn\u2019t Keep It.<\/a>
Senator Whitehouse Would Like To Tell You Exactly What He Thinks Of Todd Blanche<\/a><\/p>\n

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

Todd Blanche\u2019s two-day confirmation hearing for Attorney General was, by any measure, a lot. There was the Freudian slip where he introduced himself as Trump\u2019s 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 \u2014 they hadn\u2019t, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":157971,"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-158061","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-e1623338814705-620x568-4RqRer.jpg?fit=620%2C568&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158061","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=158061"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158061\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/157971"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=158061"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=158061"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=158061"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}