President Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, Todd Blanche, encountered renewed doubt over his Senate confirmation on Wednesday after Republican Senator Susan Collins said on Tuesday she would vote against him, narrowing the margin for approval.
With Republican Senator Mitch McConnell out of Washington indefinitely, Blanche’s tally is thin: he can withstand only one more Republican defection. A handful of other senators have voiced concern about the nomination, underscoring how precarious the final vote remains.
Senators Bill Cassidy and Lisa Murkowski, who had previously signaled reservations about Blanche, declined on Wednesday to say how they will vote. Their positions, along with those of other undecided senators, are now the focus of intensive discussions among Republican leaders.
Blanche, who is serving in the role of acting attorney general, secured the publicly known support of Republican holdouts John Cornyn and Thom Tillis by providing written assurances. Those written pledges stated that President Trump’s $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund would be ended and that a related tax-immunity agreement would apply only to past tax returns. Both elements arise from a settlement of the president’s $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS.
Despite those commitments, questions persist about whether the fund could later be revived and why the president would receive a deal from his own administration that could save him millions of dollars. Those unresolved issues have contributed to hesitation among some members of the Senate.
Senate Republican Leader John Thune said he wants to finalize Blanche’s confirmation before the Senate departs for a month-long recess scheduled to begin this week, and indicated a vote could occur within days.
"We’re having conversations with folks, the small number of people who will be undecided in this, and I’m hopeful we’ll get there," Thune told reporters on Wednesday. "But again, it’s a work in progress, and we’re not there yet."
A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Context and next steps
The immediate timeline for a final confirmation vote is compressed by the approaching Senate recess, and Republican leaders are working to resolve the outstanding concerns of a small group of undecided senators. The written assurances that gained Cornyn and Tillis’ support clarify the scope of two settlement-related provisions, but do not resolve broader questions some senators continue to raise.