Todd Blanche, President Trump’s pick to become attorney general, got key backing Friday from Sen. Bill Cassidy, boosting his confirmation chances.
Mr. Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican who has tussled with Mr. Trump over the years, said Mr. Blanche deserved support so he could effectively run the Justice Department and have more sway to resist the president when it’s necessary.
“All considered, I will vote for Mr. Blanche,” Mr. Cassidy told colleagues on the Senate floor.
A full Senate vote is expected in the coming days.
Mr. Cassidy’s decision had been anxiously watched by the White House.
Two Republicans, Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, have said they will vote against Mr. Blanche. With Sen. Mitch McConnell’s ongoing absence, the loss of a third Republican would likely delay, if not derail, Mr. Blanche’s confirmation.
Mr. Blanche has been the acting attorney general since the ouster of Pam Bondi last spring.
Mr. Cassidy noted that even if the nomination fails, Mr. Blanche will remain at the helm — though without the institutional heft that comes with being the full attorney general.
He said Mr. Blanche “showed poor judgment” in approving Mr. Trump’s $1.776 Anti-Weaponization Fund and in letting the Justice Department pursue some cases against the president’s political enemies.
“I am realistic that Mr. Trump can be unrelenting on this, but this is true no matter who the attorney general is. This is the rationale for having a Senate-confirmed attorney general with more leverage to push back,” the senator said.
He said his decision was not colored by what he called his “history” with Mr. Trump.
Mr. Cassidy voted to convict Mr. Trump in 2021 on the impeachment charge stemming from the president’s behavior surrounding the results of the 2020 election, and Mr. Trump retaliated by backing a primary challenger in Louisiana who defeated Mr. Cassidy this year.
With just months to serve, Mr. Cassidy faces no reelection repercussions.
The weaponization fund has come close to sinking Mr. Blanche, who had to make escalating attempts to disavow the idea to win over some Republicans.
It was only after he released new memos saying the DOJ rescinded the fund, and clarifying the extent of the tax immunity deal he granted Mr. Trump, that key Republicans let the nomination clear the Senate Judiciary Committee.
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