Trump reverses threat on Blanche, attacks Sen. Cornyn, defends Anti-Weaponization Fund

President Trump said Friday he wants acting Attorney General Todd Blanche “immediately” confirmed to the position, seemingly dropping a threat he made the day prior to pull his nomination and resubmit it next Congress. The president’s latest post focused on attacking Texas GOP Sen. John Cornyn for withholding his support for Mr. Blanche until the Justice Department nullifies in writing a $1.776 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund. Mr. Trump pushed for the fund to pay off “victims” of the Biden Justice Department as part of a settlement agreement to dismiss his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS for leaking his tax returns. “I will always feel that these victims of government abuse should be paid back for what they were forced to endure, their lives have been ruined!” the president said on Truth Social. “Millions of people agree with me, as was proven in my landslide Presidential win, where this was a major subject of debate, and so did John Cornyn, until he lost his Election to an opponent that I Endorsed.” After the proposed Anti-Weaponization Fund received bipartisan pushback in Congress, Mr. Blanche testified that the Justice Department would not move forward with it. Mr. Cornyn said that although Mr. Blanche declared the fund dead, the nominee agreed during his confirmation hearing that the settlement language on it was a contract and potentially could be enforced in the future. “If the president changes his mind later on and says, ’We’re going to revive the weaponization fund,’ he might be able to do that,” Mr. Cornyn said. He said he and Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina — the other Judiciary Committee holdout on Mr. Blanche’s nomination — are not the only Republican senators who want to prevent that from happening. Mr. Tillis said the president’s post defending the fund made clear it’s still alive, “which is exactly why we are attempting to formally end it.” The president said the fund was intended to benefit “the great American Patriots who were hunted down like dogs and whose lives were unfairly and illegally destroyed by the Crooked Joe Biden Administration.” He added, “Perhaps there has never been a group of people treated so badly in our Nation’s history. They are suffering still, many ruined, and I felt that they should be given compensation for what has been done to them.” Mr. Trump argued that Mr. Cornyn “never had a problem” with the fund before the president endorsed the senator’s primary opponent, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The settlement that proposed the Anti-Weaponization Fund was announced on May 18, and Mr. Trump endorsed Mr. Paxton the following day. Mr. Paxton beat Mr. Cornyn, who has since become more outspoken against some of the president’s actions and used his leverage to extract policy concessions from the White House. Mr. Trump brought up Mr. Cornyn’s grudge against him during Friday’s Cabinet meeting, saying the senator “has become very angry” after his primary loss. The president said it was unfair to make Mr. Blanche a “pawn” in the situation, but cut Mr. Cornyn some slack. “Want to know the truth? I’d probably do the same thing,” Mr. Trump said. Mr. Cornyn has not responded directly to the president’s comments, but retweeted a user thanking him for prioritizing the rule of law. “Presidents, whether we like their politics or not, should not be above the law,” posted Gregg Nunziata, executive director of the Society for the Rule of Law. Mr. Nunziata’s post included a clip of the senator being interviewed by MS NOW. The reporter asked Mr. Cornyn to respond to the president’s suggestion that the senator’s dislike for him is why he’s blocking Mr. Blanche’s nomination. “That has nothing to do with it,” Mr. Cornyn said. “This is about making sure that even if you’re the president of the United States, you don’t get favorable terms from the government in a settlement of a lawsuit that ordinary citizens would not get, like protections from audits by the IRS into the foreseeable future. So I think this is about making sure that we maintain the integrity of our justice system and fairness for everybody involved.” Mr. Cornyn has asked Mr. Blanche to sign a legally binding document affirming his testimony that the audit immunity in the settlement applies only to past tax returns of parties to the lawsuit. The senator told reporters Thursday that his fight is not with Mr. Blanche, who has largely agreed to what he has asked. “When the president got wind of it, he wasn’t willing to go along with it,” Mr. Cornyn said. Mr. Tillis also does not blame Mr. Blanche. “He has been forthright, thoughtful and patient,” he said. “It’s a shame his confirmation has hit a snag only because an incompetent personal adviser to the president refuses to amend the bogus settlement.” • Tom Howell contributed to his report. Story Topics