Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche will sit for a confirmation hearing today to be Attorney General of the United States. Throughout his tenure at the Department of Justice (DOJ), Blanche has used his position to advance Trump’s retribution campaign against his perceived political enemies; protect Trump, his family, and his allies; and deny transparency, accountability, and justice for Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes.
In response, DNC Spokesperson Jaelin O’Halloran released the following statement:
“At the Department of Justice, Todd Blanche has continued to act as Donald Trump’s de facto personal lawyer, leveraging his position to serve Trump’s personal and political interests and deny transparency, accountability, and justice for Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes. Trump is intent on installing loyalists like Blanche at every level of his administration so he can go after his perceived political enemies and protect himself, his family, and his rich and powerful friends over everyday Americans. Republicans should stand on the side of the American public in upholding an equal and fair justice system and reject Blanche’s nomination.”
Blanche has been at the forefront of the DOJ’s mishandling of the Epstein Files and the cover-up of Trump’s alleged involvement with Jeffrey Epstein. Under Blanche’s leadership, DOJ officials allegedly organized a summary of “more than a dozen tips” about Trump and Epstein, but claimed that federal investigators are unable to investigate those tips. Blanche has also repeatedly dismissed any possibility of renewed efforts to provide justice for the survivors of Epstein’s crimes. Earlier this year, Blanche said, “To the extent the Epstein Files was a part of the past year of this Justice Department, it should not be a part of anything going forward.”
Blanche also met with long-time Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell last year about her involvement with Epstein, and shortly after their meeting, Maxwell was moved to a cushier minimum-security prison. Even Republicans have criticized Blanche’s handling of the Epstein Files and his failure to comply with the law requiring the DOJ to release all of the files — including the 2.5 million files that remain hidden from the public.
Blanche has used the DOJ to go after Trump’s perceived political enemies, including opening investigations into officials such as New York Attorney General Letitia James, former Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, Governor Tim Walz, and former CNN journalist Don Lemon.
Meanwhile, Blanche has protected Trump, his family, and his allies, including by covertly signing an agreement to prevent the IRS from auditing the Trump family and their businesses, and he was also instrumental in orchestrating Trump’s $1.8 billion slush fund which would have given payouts to January 6th rioters.
