Todd Blanche headed for Senate confirmation as Cassidy says he will cast deciding vote

The Louisiana Republican argued that while Trump’s attorney general nominee was “not perfect,” another nominee may not run the Justice Department effectively.WASHINGTON (CN) — Todd Blanche appeared on track to be confirmed at the next U.S. attorney general on Friday morning, as a linchpin Republican lawmaker said in a speech on the Senate floor he would vote to confirm the nominee.The move from Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy all but ensures Blanche has enough votes to clear a crucial Senate vote this week and comes just hours after another GOP senator said she did not have confidence in the nominee’s ability to lead the Justice Department free from political influence.Speaking on the Senate floor Friday, Cassidy — who had for days refused to say how he would vote — argued the attorney general nominee was “not perfect” but the vote was not about a choice between “perfection and Mr. Blanche.”“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,” said the Louisiana senator. “This puts at risk the progress made fighting violent crime, human and drug trafficking and fraud — and this does not serve the American people well.”Cassidy acknowledged he would be “criticized” for his decision to support Blanche, but he countered he’d “worked hard to understand the issue and make the right decision.”Ahead of the senator’s announcement, Blanche’s path to confirmation had looked increasingly murky. Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski said early Friday that she would not support his nomination.In a statement, the Republican senator cited accelerating “weaponization” at the Justice Department under Blanche’s leadership — borrowing a term frequently employed by the Trump administration and typically directed at Democrats. She expressed concerns about Blanche’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files and the now-infamous settlement between Trump and the Internal Revenue Service, as well as the nominee’s statements to anti-abortion groups saying the Justice Department would take steps to clamp down on abortion drug mifepristone.Murkowski also pointed to the “repeated targeting” of the president’s political enemies by the Justice Department. The agency has probed and even charged several of Trump’s staunchest political foes, such as former FBI director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James and California Senator Adam Schiff.And the Alaska Republican said she was “keenly aware” that a controversial $1.8 billion slush fund established as part of Trump’s IRS settlement had only been canceled because Blanche’s nomination was pending and the Senate had leverage to negotiate.“The country needs an attorney general who will check the worst impulses of this administration,” Murkowski concluded. “I hope Mr. Blanche is able to achieve that, if confirmed, but I simply do not have confidence that will be the case.”Murkowski will join her colleague Senator Susan Collins of Maine in opposing Blanche’s nomination when the Senate votes.Cassidy is one of several Senate Republicans who recently lost a tough primary battle to a Trump-backed opponent and has become increasingly critical of the administration since.With Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell out of Washington recovering from a fall — and with all Democrats opposing Blanche’s nomination — there would have been no path to his confirmation if Cassidy had chosen to vote against him.The Senate, which will adjourn for August recess at the end of the week, could hold its crucial confirmation vote on Blanche as late as Saturday.Trump, for his part, has still exuded confidence that his attorney general pick will be confirmed — though he’s signaled he would have been equally unbothered if Blanche failed to secure Senate support.Speaking to Punchbowl News in an interview aired Friday, the president said he’d keep Blanche in his role as acting attorney general should the upper chamber refuse to confirm him and “try it again” later.“He’s a fair guy, not a radical flamethrower,” Trump said of Blanche, a former federal prosecutor who also served as a member of the president’s personal legal team. He added that he did not regret opposing any of the Senate Republicans who are now standing in the way of his agenda.The president has already threatened to withdraw Blanche’s nomination and put him back up for a Senate vote after some of the GOP skeptics leave office next year. There’s some precedent for his gambit to keep Blanche on as acting attorney general — former President Joe Biden kept his labor secretary Julie Su on the job in an acting capacity for two years amid tepid Senate support.Blanche drew sharp criticism from Republicans in June after he announced the Justice Department’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund which the agency said would serve as a vehicle for people targeted by the government to seek financial restitution.The acting attorney general quickly walked back the program, but it remained a thorn in his side throughout the Senate nomination process as some GOP lawmakers pointed out he had not formally rescinded the program in writing.The slush fund controversy nearly halted Blanche’s nomination at the Senate Judiciary Committee thanks to opposition from Texas Senator John Cornyn and North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis — two more outgoing Senate Republicans.But after the Justice Department issued a signed memo killing the weaponization fund, both lawmakers agreed to vote for him and are expected to support his confirmation later this week.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads