Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says he’s optimistic acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche will be confirmed this week, despite questions from fellow Republicans about Blanche’s actions on behalf of President Trump.
Grassley will chair the Senate Judiciary Committee meeting on Thursday where members will vote on whether to appoint Blanche to the post as the nation’s top attorney.
“I will vote to confirm him, yes,” Grassley says. “I’m satisfied with all the testimony he’s made and I’m satisfied with the answers that he’s given us about the controversial things that other members have.”
In exchange for dropping his $10-billion lawsuit against the IRS, President Trump announced a plan in May to create a $1.776 billion fund to compensate those he says were wrongly targeted by the Biden administration.
Blanche, who was Trump’s criminal defense attorney at the time, put an addendum on the settlement banning the government from auditing tax returns filed by Trump, his family members or their companies.
Grassley notes, that move has raised some concerns about Blanche from others who sit on the Judiciary Committee.
“We have two members that want some further satisfaction before they are going to vote for him,” Grassley says. “I think those two are the deciding votes.”
Senators John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, both Republicans, say they want to further question Blanche about his actions before Thursday’s confirmation vote.
“I’m going to be working with them and have been working with them as recently as last night being on the phone between them and the attorney general to try to get them satisfied and get them to yes,” Grassley says. “We aren’t there yet, but I think we will get there.”
The League of Women Voters is among groups opposing Blanche’s nomination, saying his “record raises serious concerns regarding accountable government, protection of constitutional rights, voting rights, and the independence of the Department of Justice.”