Overview
- A federal judge on Monday voided the Justice Department’s settlement with the IRS and referred lawyers involved, including Todd Blanche, to state bar authorities to investigate possible ethics violations.
- Blanche began Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings on July 15 and now faces intense questioning from Democrats and some Republicans, with Senators John Cornyn and Thom Tillis positioned as possible swing votes.
- The judge’s ruling centered on a plan Blanche defended that would have created roughly $1.8 billion to compensate Trump allies and granted broad tax‑audit immunity to the president and his family, a deal the administration has since abandoned.
- More than 1,200 former DOJ employees, Epstein survivors and Democratic lawmakers have criticized Blanche for overseeing the release of heavily redacted Epstein files, pursuing prosecutions of Trump critics such as James Comey, and presiding over large staff departures they say hurt morale and independence.
- The committee’s vote will shape the DOJ’s direction because a confirmation would likely lock in leadership aligned with President Trump’s prosecutorial priorities, while a rejection would prolong a high‑stakes fight over the department’s role and norms.