Trump Threatens to Yank Blanche's AG Nomination Until Cornyn and Tillis Leave Office

Since the Senate Judiciary Committee scrapped Thursday's scheduled vote on Todd Blanche's attorney general nomination, President Trump has escalated rather than dealt. On Truth Social, he said he's fine with "temporarily withdrawing Todd's name" and keeping Blanche as acting AG until Senators John Cornyn and Thom Tillis are gone from Congress in January.

It's aimed at two Republicans who Trump says already lost their jobs because of him, and he wants credit for it.

What's actually holding this up

The holdup traces back to the Justice Department's settlement of Trump's lawsuit against his own IRS over leaked tax returns. Part of that deal created a $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund meant to compensate people who say the federal government unfairly targeted them.

Cornyn and Tillis have hammered that fund for weeks because, as written, it could funnel taxpayer money to defendants charged in the January 6 Capitol riot. Blanche has said publicly the fund isn't moving forward. Cornyn says that's not good enough, according to NPR. He wants it in writing, specifically the scope of a separate immunity deal shielding Trump, his family, and his businesses from audits of past tax returns.

If DOJ leadership says a controversial fund is dead, putting the terms on paper costs nothing unless there's something in those terms they don't want documented. Cornyn told reporters, according to the Daily Signal, "I haven't seen a single piece of writing that is responsive to what I've requested." He sent DOJ a red-line counteroffer this week. He's still waiting.

DOJ officials pushed back, telling reporters they've been talking to Cornyn's staff for a week and thought they had a deal, according to the Daily Signal. Somebody's account doesn't add up, and neither side has produced the actual document that would settle it.

Tillis says this is bad politics, not just bad process

Tillis, speaking to CNBC on Capitol Hill Thursday, didn't hide his frustration with his own party's strategy. "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 said.

He also pointed out the obvious contradiction: if the fund is truly dead, why won't DOJ just say so in writing? "It makes no sense to me," Tillis said, adding that the refusal makes it "look like they weren't being honest" when Blanche said the fund was no longer operative.

Either the fund is gone or it isn't. A one-paragraph confirmation letter shouldn't be a two-week standoff.

Trump's response: end their careers, not the dispute

Rather than address the paperwork request, Trump went after the messengers. He noted Cornyn lost his Texas primary in May to Trump-backed challenger Ken Paxton, and that Tillis announced his retirement last year after clashing with Trump over his tax-and-spending bill. "Both Cornyn and Tillis voted for Merrick Garland," Trump wrote, referring to the Biden-era AG confirmed 70-30 in 2021, comparing that bipartisan vote unfavorably to their current resistance.

Cornyn pushed back. He replied on X that Trump "is mistaken if he believes concerns about the provisions in his tax lawsuit settlement are limited to me and Senator Tillis," suggesting other Republicans share the reservations even if they haven't said so publicly.

The mechanics of the standoff

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley needs every Republican on the committee to move Blanche's nomination to a floor vote. If Cornyn or Tillis votes no, the nomination stalls in committee regardless of what the full Senate might do. That's why Trump's threat to just withdraw and wait until January is a real option, not just bluster: outlast the two holdouts, then renominate Blanche to a committee that no longer includes them.

Tillis told CNBC the vote "could be quickly rescheduled" if his concerns get addressed, calling it "this kink in the slinky" that needs sorting out. This suggests the issue is fixable if DOJ produces the written guarantees Cornyn asked for, rather than a fundamental break between Trump and two members of his own party.

Blanche remains acting attorney general either way, running the Justice Department with no confirmation vote in sight. The open question is whether DOJ actually hands over the paperwork Cornyn wants, or whether Trump decides it's cheaper to just wait five months for two senators to walk out the door.