In the latest public spat between President Donald Trump and two Republican senators, the president offered a new threat: approve Todd Blanche as attorney general or the anti-weaponization fund returns.
"It will immediately be back on the table, and I will get it done," Trump wrote in an Aug. 1 Truth Social post which says Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who is also Trump's former personal lawyer, would stay in his "acting" rank and bring back the fund if not confirmed.
Sens. Thom Tillis and John Cornyn are stalling the confirmation amid questions about Trump's "anti-weaponization fund," the $1.776 billion Department of Justice fund that would offer taxpayer dollars to individuals who say they are victims of political backlash and legal
challenges. Blanche helped settle a lawsuit between Trump and his own Internal Revenue Service which created the it, and on Friday, July 31, the president appealed a ruling that blocked access to the fund.
Trump said in his new post that the fund "takes care of those who have been so badly treated by the Crooked Joe Biden (and Obuma!) Administration," but Tillisresponded in a post that it is a "payout pot for punks." Critics of the fund see it as a way for Trump's political allies and those pardoned for the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol to cash in on taxpayer dollars.
"It’s unfortunate that Todd Blanche, who I consider qualified for the job, will not be confirmed because of this reversal," Tillis wrote. "Hopefully, we can resolve this by Tuesday."
On Tuesday, Aug. 4, the Senate Judiciary Committee, which Tillis and Cornyn are members of, will meet to potentially confirm Blanche as attorney general. Earlier this week, Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley cancelled a Thursday, July 30 vote to confirm Blanche to the post which has been vacant since Trump fired former Attorney General Pam Bondi in April.
The president has been back and forth on demands. On July 30, Trump weighed pulling Blanche's nomination until Tillis, who is not running for reelection, and Cornyn, who lost to a Trump-backed Republican challenger in the primary, are out of office in a few months.
The next day, July 31, Trump called on the two senators to "immediately" confirm Blanche, and he filed his appeal to reopen access to the the fund. Earlier that day at his Camp David Cabinet meeting, Trump said the anti-weaponization fund was dead but "I wish it weren't."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump threatens anti-weaponization fund returns if Blanche not confirmed
