A vote to advance Todd Blanche’s nomination to be President Donald Trump’s attorney general appeared on the verge of postponement late Wednesday, with a key GOP senator intensifying his calls for the Justice Department to guarantee that a controversial $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund won’t move forward.
The pushback from Texas Sen. John Cornyn comes as the Senate Judiciary Committee is set to advance Blanche’s nomination on Thursday. But without Cornyn’s support, the vote will fail – and it’s now unclear if that vote will move forward. Any delay could mean that the nomination is in serious jeopardy since it could stall it indefinitely or push it back until the fall at the earliest with the Senate set to leave for August recess at the end of next week.
Cornyn and GOP Sen. Thom Tillis said late Wednesday afternoon they still had not reached a deal with the Justice Department resolving their concerns about its handling of the fund and potential IRS audits of President Trump’s family and organization.
Leaving the Capitol on Wednesday evening, Cornyn said that he heard Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley is considering postponing the committee vote, but said “Senator Grassley is the one who will make that call.”
