The White House engaged Monday with Sens. Thom Tillis and John Cornyn as it seeks their votes to confirm attorney general nominee Todd Blanche in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Tillis and Cornyn both confirmed the back-and-forth in interviews on Capitol Hill Monday evening, and a White House official, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said in a statement that “the Administration continues to have active conversations with members of the Senate Judiciary Committee.”
Both senators were described in the reporting as Republicans spurned by the Trump administration for not being adequately loyal, and the account said a single “no” vote on the GOP side of the Judiciary Committee could tank Blanche’s prospects.
Sen. John Cornyn responded, “Well, does he want to get confirmed or not?” when asked whether he could extract concessions from Blanche, and Cornyn said he is discussing with the administration two components of a settlement Blanche brokered with the IRS: one shielding Trump and his family from IRS audits and the other launching a $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund” critics believe could operate as a slush fund.
In 404 pages of written responses to additional questions released Monday night, Blanche sidestepped queries about the fund, writing that “it would be inappropriate for me to comment on hypothetical communications I may or may not have with the President,” and adding, “The Anti-Weaponization Fund is dead.”
Tillis said he needs the fund nullified in order to vote for Blanche and that the Justice Department has coordinated with his staff; “I know my staff have been in touch, almost, probably daily,” with the DOJ, Tillis said, and at least one survivor of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse called a sit down with Blanche “insufficient” and alleged Blanche took no responsibility for the botched redaction process.
Cornyn said changing the settlement through legislation would be “much more problematic,” while Tillis has discussed drafting legislation that could pass the Senate through a unanimous consent agreement; Tillis said, “I have to be convinced that there is no way that it could actually ever be resurrected again,” and Blanche did not shoot down the idea and offered to help write technical language.
One person granted anonymity regarding the nomination process said, “Tillis, we think, is squared away,” and Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said he had heard “favorable comments over the weekend from Tillis.”
Republicans hope the Judiciary Committee can vote to report Blanche’s nomination favorably to the Senate floor July 30 and subsequently confirm him the first week of August before the chamber leaves for a monthlong recess; Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Monday he “think[s]” Grassley and his team are prepared to get Blanche out of committee “in time to process him in this work period,” adding, “At this point, I’m not certain. I think they’re hopeful.”