Todd Blanche faces Senate scrutiny over Trump lawsuit and Epstein records

Todd Blanche enters his Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday after a federal judge found Donald Trump’s $10 billion IRS lawsuit was filed for an improper purpose, putting the Justice Department’s independence at the center of the fight. The Senate Judiciary Committee has set the hearing for 9 a.m. in Hart Senate Office Building Room 216, with outside witnesses scheduled for July 16.

U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams on Monday upended the deal and found the case was not a genuine legal dispute, but an effort to manipulate the courts. Her order wiped out the now-abandoned $1.776 billion to $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund, referred Trump lawyer Alejandro Brito to the Florida Bar for possible discipline and limited Daniel Epstein’s practice in the Southern District of Florida. Williams also barred the Justice Department, the IRS and Trump from relying on the deal as evidence of a legitimate settlement in future proceedings.

American Oversight filed a June FOIA lawsuit seeking Blanche’s emails, texts and messages about Epstein-related matters and Jack Smith-related matters, while the Justice Department issued federal grand jury subpoenas for New York Times reporters on July 10. The Committee to Protect Journalists urged senators to press Blanche on what it calls a pattern of retaliation and intimidation against journalists during his tenure.

Trump fired Pam Bondi in April and installed Blanche as acting attorney general after Blanche’s March 2025 confirmation as deputy attorney general, and Blanche previously represented Trump as a criminal defense lawyer in the federal cases brought by special counsel Jack Smith and in the New York prosecution that ended with 34 felony convictions.

John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina remained undecided, and Lindsey Graham’s death over the weekend left the panel at 11 Republicans and 10 Democrats until a replacement is named.