WASHINGTON, June 4 - President Donald Trump announced that he would move on Thursday to formally nominate Todd Blanche, the acting U.S. Attorney General, to serve as the permanent head of the Justice Department. The nomination, if advanced and confirmed, would elevate Blanche - described by the president as his former personal lawyer - to the nation’s top law enforcement role.
Speaking at a White House event, Trump said:
"He’s acting attorney General. Tomorrow. I’m instructing Dan (Scavino) and everybody else that’s involved in that very complicated process - which is going to go, I think, very quickly - that we are going to make him permanent attorney general,"a segment of which was posted on X late on Wednesday by his aide Dan Scavino.
Blanche, 51, assumed leadership of the Justice Department after Trump dismissed Pam Bondi in April. Bondi's departure came amid tensions tied to the department’s handling and release of files connected to convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and amid the president's expressed frustration that the department was not acting forcefully enough against individuals he regards as political adversaries.
Since taking the acting role, Blanche has encountered criticism from members of his own party and from some within the White House. The controversy centered on a Justice Department proposal to establish a $1.8 billion fund intended for victims of alleged government "weaponization." Facing intense bipartisan pushback, Blanche announced on Tuesday that the department would not move forward with that plan.
The fund proposal's withdrawal followed fierce opposition from both sides of the aisle and raised questions about its potential to imperil related legislative initiatives. In particular, the plan had threatened to derail a $72 billion funding package tied to the administration’s immigration enforcement agenda.
For Blanche to be confirmed as the permanent attorney general, he would need near-unanimous backing from Senate Republicans. Republicans control the chamber by a narrow 53-47 margin, leaving little room for defections. Trump also said in a separate interview broadcast on Wednesday that he was likely to formally nominate Blanche for the permanent position.
Context and next steps
The president's public statement initiates the process toward a formal nomination. Given the objections voiced by Republican senators and some White House aides over the now-abandoned victims fund, Blanche's path to confirmation is likely to hinge on securing broad Republican support in the Senate's narrow majority. The Justice Department's decision to shelve the $1.8 billion proposal removes one immediate point of contention, but the article's details indicate lingering resistance within political and legislative circles.