Facing resistance from two Republican senators who are slated to leave Congress in January, President Donald Trump said July 30 he may temporarily pull his nomination of acting Attorney General Todd Blanche,
though Trump's pick would remain in his current role.
Trump's comments come after Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley canceled a scheduled vote for the morning of July 30 on whether to send Blanche's attorney general nomination to the full Senate for a final vote, after Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina expressed misgivings about voting "yes" without concessions from Blanche's Justice Department.
"Todd Blanche is a STAR, and everyone knows it!" Trump posted on Truth Social on July 30. "However, John Cornyn, of Texas, and Thom Tillis, of North Carolina, both of whom I refused to Endorse, and whose political careers have been ended by my action, are refusing to vote for this Great Nominee, who will remain, in any event, as Acting."
"I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd’s name, if they do not do the right thing, and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office," Trump added.
Blanche's confirmation process has floundered over objections to his handling of a settlement of a lawsuit from Trump against the IRS. It attempted to shield Trump, his two oldest sons, and the Trump Organization from tax audits and to create a nearly $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund that might have given taxpayer dollars to Trump supporters who committed crimes during the Capitol riot.
Grassley told reporters July 30 that he was focusing on finding a compromise, but didn’t entertain Trump’s idea of waiting on the nomination.
"I’m trying to find a resolution. Why would I consider anything else?" he said.
Tillis reiterated that his main issue is making sure the "anti-weaponization" fund – which Blanche has said the DOJ won't move forward with – truly goes away.
Asked whether waiting until he and Cornyn are gone next year would be wise, Tillis told reporters the president "will have to decide what the split looks like."
“I’m not a no. I’m still working on getting this done and I’m still optimistic that we will," Tillis said.
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the committee, who is retiring in January, told USA TODAY he believes other Republican senators agree with Cornyn and Tillis, but have been afraid to say the first word about it.
"These two senators, like me, are lame ducks. And they have more courage to deal with these issues than their colleagues," Durbin said.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump says he may pull Blanche attorney general nomination – for now
