President Donald Trump called on senators to "immediately" approve Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche for the job permanently, digging in on Blanche a day after saying he might temporarily pull his nomination.
Trump also defended a $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund that has put Blanche's nomination in jeopardy, and lashed out at a lawmaker who is critical of the fund. Republican senators John Cornyn and Thom Tillis have sought assurances that the fund has been scrapped.
Trump slammed Cornyn in a July 31 social media post and said "victims of government abuse should be paid back for what they were forced to endure, their lives have been ruined!"
"Todd Blanche, a good man, should be immediately approved as U.S. Attorney General," Trump added.
The president said July 30 that he might temporarily pull Blanche's nomination until Cornyn and Tillis are out of office. Cornyn lost his primary to a Trump-backed opponent, and Tillis isn't seeking re-election after clashing with Trump.
Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley canceled a planned July 30 vote on Blanche's nomination as Cornyn and Tillis continued to express concerns about how the acting attorney general handled a settlement of Trump's lawsuit against the IRS. The settlement protected the president, his two oldest sons and their business from tax audits for prior years, and established the "anti-weaponization" fund for alleged victims of government legal abuse.
The fund has drawn bipartisan criticism, including over concerns that it could be used to pay individuals convicted of crimes related to the Jan. 6, 2021 storming of the U.S. Capitol.
A federal judge voided the IRS settlement and blocked the fund, and Blanche told lawmakers during a June. 2 congressional hearing that "We are not moving forward with the fund, period." Some senators have sought additional guarantees that the fund won't reemerge, though.
Trump's defense of the fund could add to their concerns.
The presidentsaid July 31 that the "so called 'fund'" would benefit "the great American Patriots who were hunted down like dogs and whose lives were unfairly and illegally destroyed by the Crooked Joe Biden Administration."
Contributing: Zachary Schermele, Aysha Bagchi,Cindi Andrews
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump digs in on Blanche, defends weaponization fund
