Todd Blanche sworn in as AG; White House celebrates ‘huge win’

President Donald Trump’s pick for U.S. attorney general, Todd Blanche, was sworn in Monday, following a contentious battle in the Senate.

The Senate confirmed Blanche, Trump’s former personal lawyer, on Saturday in a 50-49 vote, with Republican Sens. Susan Collins from Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voting no with Democrats. 

“Todd Blanche’s confirmation is a huge win for President Trump and our country,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to Heartlander News. “Todd is going to be a phenomenal Attorney General of the United States. The American people will be well served by his unwavering commitment to law and order.”

Blanche, who has led the Justice Department as acting attorney general since Pam Bondi was ousted in April, faced an uphill battle in the Senate due to resistance from several key Republicans, as Heartlander News reported. In particular, Sens. Thom Tillis and John Cornyn held up a key committee vote due to concerns about a nearly $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund they feared would be used as a slush fund for Trump’s political allies.

Once Blanche confirmed the fund was killed in writing, the senators advanced the vote to the full Senate, where he was ultimately confirmed after a critical vote from Sen. Bill Cassidy, the final Republican holdout.

Speaking on the Senate floor to vote yes, Cassidy said that while Blanche had shown “poor judgment” in some areas, such as initially approving the anti-weaponization fund, Blanche had since said it was a mistake and “made efforts to kill the slush fund.”

Cassidy said he was not confident that Trump would pick someone better to lead the department if Blanche wasn’t confirmed. 

“The choice is not between perfection and Mr. Blanche,” Cassidy said. “It is between Mr. Blanche and another acting attorney general who may not run the department effectively under President Trump and who indeed may not be as good as Mr. Blanche.”

He added that the vote was “not a referendum on President Trump,” but rather “a decision regarding Mr. Blanche in very specific circumstances.”

After his Senate confirmation Saturday, Blanche said he was “deeply honored by the trust and confidence President Trump has placed in me” and thanked senators for “staying late to complete this process.”

“To the dedicated public servants of the Department of Justice, thank you for your work each day to uphold the law and keep our country safe,” he wrote on X.

Photo: Blanche sworn in as Deputy Attorney General earlier this year (Credit: White House)