Trump’s attorney general pick faces his confirmation hearing this week carrying the same baggage he’s had all year: total loyalty to Trump, and virtually no independence from him.
Todd Blanche built his name as Trump’s personal defense lawyer, and he has spent his time atop the Justice Department acting like it. As deputy attorney general and now acting attorney general, Blanche defended the DOJ’s handling of the Epstein files and dismissed Trump’s own role in the matter. When Epstein’s victims pushed back, Blanche ignored them and played the victim himself.
Here is what senators should know before they vote:
- Hundreds of his own colleagues want him rejected. More than 1,100 former Justice Department officials signed a letter urging the Senate Judiciary Committee to reject Blanche, warning he has instilled a culture of fear inside the department and abandoned the principle that America is a government of laws.
- The New York City Bar Association is opposed. Its letter lays out five separate categories of misconduct, including politically motivated prosecutions, violations of court orders, and what it calls Blanche’s misplaced loyalty to Trump over the rule of law.
- A federal judge has already found him in violation of the law. A court ruled that Blanche violated the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and more than 100 former judges have filed an ethics complaint against him.
- The DOJ is fighting to keep the public in the dark. The department has so far succeeded in blocking public records requests about Blanche’s role in the Epstein review before senators even get to vote on him.
- He is inheriting the same job he already botched. Trump fired Blanche’s predecessor, Pam Bondi, in April for mishandling the Epstein files. Blanche ran that entire process, and Trump is now trying to hand him the job permanently.
“Todd Blanche has one qualification for Attorney General: he’ll do whatever Trump tells him. That’s a liability the Senate can’t afford to confirm,” said American Bridge 21st Century spokesperson Brandon Weathersby. “He never left private practice; he just brought it with him to the Justice Department. Blanche won’t work to bring justice for Americans, but he will work to shield Trump from accountability, reward Trump’s allies, and punish Trump’s enemies. The Justice Department needs someone who answers to the Constitution, and Todd Blanche answers only to Trump.”
Published: Jul 15, 2026