The US Senate has narrowly confirmed Trump’s former lawyer Todd Blanche as Attorney General in a tight 50-49 vote. The vote followed an official agreement between Senate Republicans and the Trump administration over Blanche who has functioned as a temporary attorney general since April.
Blanche won this confirmation with two Republican senators, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski mobilizing all Democrats to oppose his nomination.
According to Senator Bill Cassidy, the decision was closely monitored in Washington following years of tensions between the Louisiana Republican and Trump.
Some Republican senators had voiced concerns about Blanche’s handling of the release of Jeffrey-Epstein related documents and his involvement in establishing Trump’s $1.8billion anti-weaponization fund.
The fund was intended to compensate individuals who alleged government oppression but critics including Murkowski feared it would go to individuals who were charged with involvement in the January 6 attack on Congress in 2021.
Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski announced on Friday that she opposes Trump’s nomination for US attorney general highlighting concerns toward the political bias of the Justice Department.
Currently it remains obscure whether the legal obligation is legally binding or whether Trump later persuaded Blanche, his prior personal attorney, to resurrect an identical project under a different name.
Cassidy highlights Trump’s supreme power over organization decisions regarding the direction of the justice department but argued that Senate confirmation would give Blanche more leverage to push for things that should be pushed for.
Blanche was already deputy attorney general when he stepped into the acting role in April after Pam Bondi was fired.
