WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has announced plans to formally nominate his former personal defense attorney, Todd Blanche, to serve as the nation’s permanent Attorney General.
The declaration was made during a White House Rose Garden dinner event. “Tomorrow, I’m instructing… that we are going to make him permanent attorney general,” Trump told guests in remarks later shared on social media by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino.
Blanche has served as the acting head of the Department of Justice (DOJ) since April 2026, taking the reins after Trump abruptly dismissed former Attorney General Pam Bondi. Bondi’s ouster followed intense scrutiny over her department’s handling of redacted investigative files related to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as well as what administration insiders characterized as a failure to successfully prosecute Trump’s perceived political adversaries.
A Lightning Rod for Controversy
Since stepping into the acting role, Blanche has aggressively advanced executive priorities, drawing fierce condemnation from Democrats and civil liberties groups who argue he continues to operate more like the president’s personal loyalist than an independent arbiter of justice. Under his watch, the DOJ has targeted leaks and pursued indictments against several high-profile individuals whom Trump considers political opponents, including former FBI Director James Comey.
However, Blanche’s most contentious battle center stage involves a now-defunct $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund”. The proposed fund, which critics heavily blasted as a taxpayer-funded “slush fund” intended to reward Trump’s political allies and January 6 defendants, originated from a settlement resolving Trump’s $10 billion civil lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) over leaked tax returns.
Faced with a bipartisan firestorm in Congress and a federal court order temporarily blocking the program, Blanche performed an extraordinary about-face during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing.
“We are not moving forward with the fund, period,” Blanche testified to lawmakers, marking the administration’s formal retreat from the financial payout plan.
The IRS Audit Immunity Remains
Despite scrapping the $1.8 billion fund, Blanche confirmed that other highly unusual provisions of the IRS settlement will remain fully intact. Most notably, the agreement permanently bars the IRS from conducting back-tax audits or investigations into Trump, his family members, and their associated business entities.
Tax experts and congressional Democrats have vehemently criticized the arrangement, calling it an unprecedented “super pardon” that potentially violates the U.S. Constitution’s Emoluments Clause by granting the president direct personal financial immunity. Critics also noted that while Blanche verbally killed the $1.8 billion fund, he explicitly refused to commit to putting the rescission in writing, sparking skepticism from opposition lawmakers.
The Road to Confirmation
Blanche’s upcoming confirmation battle before the Senate Judiciary Committee promises to be a grueling political showdown. While he secured a relatively smooth confirmation as Deputy Attorney General in early 2025, his recent actions as acting head have alienated key figures.
”Todd Blanche is an American patriot who fearlessly fought against the Democrats’ unprecedented lawfare campaign,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a statement defending his record.
With Democrats united in opposition over the weaponization of the DOJ and some Senate Republicans still frustrated by the recent legislative budget gridlock caused by the slush fund controversy, Blanche’s path to becoming the permanent leader of Main Justice remains highly volatile.
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