Todd Blanche's path to becoming attorney general just hit a procedural wall. Texas Sen. John Cornyn is stalling a committee vote on Blanche's confirmation, insisting the Justice Department put in writing that its controversial "Anti-Weaponization Fund" is finished for good, as well as clarify who exactly is shielded from future tax audits under an IRS settlement with President Trump, reports CBS News. The Senate Judiciary Committee abruptly postponed Thursday's planned hearing as leaders scrambled for enough support.
Blanche, now serving as acting attorney general, has testified that the $1.8 billion fund "never started," but Cornyn suggests that verbal assurances aren't enough and has sent DOJ a "redline strikeout." The DOJ, for its part, says it has been in contact and offered a written proposal; Cornyn calls that proposal insufficient and "not responsive" to what he'd asked for, accusing the agency of "stonewalling," per the AP. "[We've] been trying to help them get to a conclusion here and they won't let us. It's befuddling to me," Cornyn told reporters on Wednesday.
When asked what he thought the holdup was, Cornyn added that he suspected Trump's lawyers had inserted themselves behind the scenes, per ABC News. A second Republican, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, joined Cornyn in expressing these concerns. From the Oval Office, Trump suggested that Cornyn is retaliating against him for not endorsing Cornyn in his Texas primary race against Ken Paxton, though the GOP senator flatly denied it, noting, "That's a convenient excuse, and it happens to be untrue."
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