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President Trump’s threat to withdraw the nomination of acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is raising questions about the future of the anti-weaponization fund as well as the power of the Senate GOP.
Blanche faced a singular roadblock in winning GOP backing for his nomination: a call by many in the party to put in writing that the Justice Department would kill the $1.776 billion fund many see as a way for Trump to funnel money to his allies.
But weeks of negotiations over how to formally kill the fund have bubbled up into a feud, with Trump saying he would consider withdrawing Blanche to simply wait out the two lame duck Republican senators holding him up, Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.).
The move has left some Republicans bitter over Trump’s battles with his own party, particularly as the exiting Cornyn and Tillis take political cover for GOP colleagues who likewise oppose the fund but have not had to become the face of the issue.
For Democrats, it’s a sign Trump is simply not willing to give up the much-maligned fund, as well as a related memo giving immunity to him, his children and businesses. That document would give Trump and his family broad protection, including over past tax filings.
“Well, you know, the president has a unique way of negotiating,” Cornyn told reporters Thursday, after a slated business meeting to advance Blanche’s nomination was postponed.
“I mean, he may think that he’s got us where he wants us. But the fact is, there’s no guarantee who the senators are going to be that will replace Sen. Tillis and myself, and he may have a weaker hand next year than he does now, and it’s unfortunate because we tried not to escalate this fight,” he said, adding that the move also means Trump “wants to revive [the fund] at some point later on.
Blanche had a last-minute meeting with the two lame ducks Thursday afternoon as negotiations over the fund continue, and Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said his focus is “concentrating on the next few days to get this nomination through.”
For his part, Tillis sees the fund as a campaign liability for his colleagues, something Trump may fail to appreciate if he seeks to keep the fund alive.
“The main thing is the 1776 fund needs to go away, or they’re going to hang this yoke around our candidates’ necks, and rightly so, because somebody– I believe the only logical conclusion I can draw from this setback is that, in fact, there is somebody who wants to enable it at the right time. That’s unacceptable,” Tillis told reporters.
“It makes no sense to me. This is not popular. The president’s not winning on this issue. It is killing some of our candidates because they can’t explain it,” he added later.
While Cornyn and Tillis have risked the brunt of the president’s ire, they aren’t on an island on the issue of the “anti-weaponization” fund.
Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio), who is up for re-election in a competitive race, told The Hill he thinks Blanche is “a very talented man” but declined to say whether he’ll support Blanche on the floor if it comes to that.
“I think that a lot of people share those concerns,” Husted said when asked if he shared their reticence about the fund. “I don’t think they’re the only ones.”
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who is not up for reelection this fall but is a frequent swing vote in the conference, said Thursday that in her private meeting with Blanche, she had told him she also wants clarity on the scope of the Trump family settlement agreement.
“What you have seen Sen. Cornyn ask Mr. Blanche in committee about the specifics are very much what I shared with him,” Murkowski said. “I asked him in our private meeting if they, he, the administration would be willing to narrow that scope and put that in writing. So yes, I had the same concerns that Sen. Cornyn had. He’s just been able to express them in an open hearing.”
Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) said the push by Cornyn and Tillis amounted to “exercising their right for advice and consent” – a routine push but one he said he would be watching.
“I haven’t met with [Blanche] specifically on this, but I’m watching very carefully how they respond to the issue of the fund and what the end result is there,” Rounds said.
Even some of the more loyal Trump allies in the Senate suggested there’s a gap in clarity from the administration.
“I don’t think any of us know enough about it,” Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) said when asked if he had his own concerns about the DOJ fund and the IRS immunity provision.
Cornyn, in response to Trump’s public statement that he would yank the nomination rather than give them their assurances, put his thoughts succintly online: “POTUS is mistaken if he believes concerns about the provisions in his tax lawsuit settlement are limited to me and Senator Tillis.”
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee who is also retiring this year, said Cornyn and Tillis have occupied a critical position in their conference because of their willingness to be out in front.
“I have no doubt that many Republican senators agree with Cornyn and with Tillis, and they’ve been afraid to say the first word about it. These two senators, like me, are lame ducks, and they have more courage to deal with these issues than their colleagues,” he said.
Many Democrats on Thursday were thrilled with the idea of Blanche being withdrawn — though Trump’s message suggested he would return to the Senate with the same nominee.
But many saw a more ominous unwillingness to part ways with the fund.
Blanche had told House appropriators the $1.776 billion fund was “not moving forward, period” but declined to ever put that in writing.
Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Trump shouldn’t just withdraw Blanche but “exile him.”
He saw Trump’s threats, however, as speaking volumes about his plans for the fund.
“It’s still alive. I mean, what you’re seeing is that Trump is determined to get that anti-weaponization fund, and Todd Blanche was lying once again when he said he had no problem not proceeding with it because he clearly does. He’s not putting it in writing,” Welch said.
“What’s clear about this is that Trump is more concerned about preserving his anti-weaponization fund than he is being loyal to Todd Blanche.”
Beyond the fund, a memo signed by Blanche would also stand to benefit Trump. That document “bars and forever precludes” review by any government agency of Trump’s past conduct, including past tax returns that could carry a bill as high as $100 million.
“The minimal demands made by these Republican senators are simply that the president avoid doing something that is plainly improper and unlawful,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), another member of the panel.
“This attorney general’s refusal to accede to their requests simply shows [Trump] is putting a higher priority on $100 million going into his pocket than confirming an attorney general.”
In the meantime, the midterms are creeping closer and there’s a worry that Republican infighting muddies their chance to message before it’s too late.
“Why in the world do we keep prolonging things that can just tear us to pieces?” Sen. Jim Justice (R-W.Va.) said. “And what we’re going to do, we’re going to waken to the midterms, you know, with our butt handed to us.”
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