Todd Blanche's nomination as attorney general remains stalled due to objections from Republican Senators John Cornyn and Thom Tillis over a controversial IRS settlement involving President Donald Trump that shields Trump and his affiliates from IRS audits and enforcement actions [1, 2, 3, 4].
The Senate Judiciary Committee postponed the vote to advance Blanche's nomination, originally scheduled for July 30, 2026, after Cornyn and Tillis demanded written guarantees from the Department of Justice to modify the settlement agreement [5, 2, 3, 4, 6]. Cornyn said, "Well, I'm not prepared to vote 'yes.' Let me put it that way." [1]
Cornyn and Tillis want the agreement amended to remove broad immunity for Trump, his family members, and affiliated entities from IRS audits. They also seek a formal end to a $1.776 billion 'anti-weaponization' fund meant to compensate alleged victims of political prosecution [1, 2, 7, 4, 8, 9]. According to DOJ and Blanche testimony, the fund is effectively ended, but Republicans want that made official in writing [2, 4, 8]. Cornyn said, "I think I am prepared to vote no, but I do think I owe it to my constituents and to Mr. Blanche to try to negotiate in good faith..." [8]
Without Cornyn and Tillis's support, Blanche cannot advance out of the committee because the Republican majority is slim and all Democrats are expected to oppose him [1, 2, 3, 4]. Trump publicly criticized Cornyn and Tillis for blocking the confirmation, blaming Cornyn's opposition on Trump’s failure to endorse him in the Texas GOP primary, and threatened to withdraw Blanche's nomination until both senators leave office next year [5, 10, 6, 11, 8]. Trump called Blanche "a STAR" and said he has "the potential to go down as one of the Greatest Attorney Generals of All Time" [6]. Cornyn responded, "POTUS is mistaken if he believes concerns about the provisions in his tax lawsuit settlement are limited to me and Senator Tillis." [6]
A timeline of recent developments shows the escalation: On July 29, Senator Cornyn canceled a meeting with Blanche over the unresolved IRS settlement exemption concerns [1]. On July 30, the Judiciary Committee postponed the nomination vote due to the dispute [5, 2, 3, 4]. That same day, Trump threatened to withdraw Blanche’s nomination until Cornyn and Tillis leave office [5, 10, 6]. On July 31, Trump publicly attacked Cornyn over the opposition [11]. On August 1, Trump vowed to keep Blanche as acting attorney general and promote an Anti-Weaponization Bill in Congress if confirmation fails [8].
On August 2, Cornyn and Tillis lifted their objections and agreed to support Blanche’s nomination after DOJ agreed to permanently end the anti-weaponization fund and restrict audit immunity to Trump and his immediate family as outlined in the settlement [9]. They said, "We want to express our gratitude to Mr. Blanche and his staff for working with us on this, and we look forward to voting to advance his nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee soon." [9]
The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to hold a vote to advance Blanche’s nomination following these DOJ commitments.
