Blanche’s attorney-general nomination stalls over Trump’s IRS lawsuit – US politics live

Donald Trump has said he may pull and delay Todd Blanche ’s nomination for attorney general as he looks to avoid concessions to holdout Republicans John Cornyn and Thom Tillis saying he might re-nominate Blanche once they’re out of office.

Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform:

double quotation mark Todd Blanche is a STAR, and everyone knows it! He has the potential to go down as one of the Greatest Attorney Generals of All Time. However, John Cornyn , of Texas, and Thom Tillis , of North Carolina, both of whom I refused to Endorse, and whose political careers have been ended by my action, are refusing to vote for this Great Nominee, who will remain, in any event, as Acting. Remember, both Cornyn and Tillis voted for Merrick Garland, and others, too numerous to mention. I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd’s name, if they do not do the right thing, and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office.

Cornyn and Tillis both leave office next year, with Tillis not seeking re-election and Cornyn having lost his primary in May to a Trump-backed challenger.

The Senate judiciary committee vote on Blanche’s nomination to become attorney general was scrapped last night , after the two senators demanded further assurances about the settlement of Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service.

Cornyn and Tillis demanded additional assurances in writing that the so-called ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’ is dead and pressed for clarification on the scope of the tax immunity deal.

Cornyn has said he wants the administration to modify that piece of the settlement to make clear that it covers only existing audits and does not protect the president from examination of future tax filings.