Trump ties AG confirmation to $1.8 billion fund, calls it 'back on the table' if Blanche blocked

The fund's origins and collapse

The anti-weaponization fund was announced in May as part of a settlement of Trump's $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over the alleged mishandling of his tax records. It would have allowed Trump allies to claim compensation for what they described as politically motivated prosecutions under the Biden and Obama administrations. The Justice Department set the fund at $1.776 billion, usually rounded to $1.8 billion, and it drew immediate bipartisan criticism. Lawmakers from both parties, as well as law enforcement groups, condemned it as a slush fund that could reward January 6 rioters and other supporters with taxpayer money. The Justice Department moved to dissolve the fund after the backlash. Separately, on 13 July, US District Judge Kathleen Williams sanctioned the lawyers behind the settlement, writing that the lawsuit had been improperly employed to justify the fund and that the action was never about a party seeking judicial resolution of a legal issue or a factual dispute.

The confirmation standoff

Todd Blanche, Trump's former criminal defense attorney, has been serving as acting attorney general since April. His confirmation requires the support of all Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Senators Thom Tillis of North Carolina and John Cornyn of Texas are withholding their votes. Both want Blanche to provide a written commitment that the Justice Department will not resurrect the fund. The Trump administration has not offered such a guarantee. Tillis and Cornyn, whose terms expire in January, have emerged as persistent obstacles. Cornyn lost a primary election in May to Trump-backed Ken Paxton, while Tillis announced last year he would not seek re-election.

Trump's Saturday threat

On Saturday morning, Trump posted on Truth Social that if Cornyn and Tillis did not support Blanche, he would keep him as acting attorney general and push Congress to pass legislation creating the fund. He wrote that if the two senators "aren't going to approve Todd Blanche" he would "keep Todd as Acting A.G." while pushing "hard to get the Anti-Weaponization Bill... PASSED", and that the bill would be "immediately... back on the table".

Trump praised Blanche as "one of the most respected professionals, according to everybody, in the Country" and accused the two senators of being upset because he did not endorse them. The threat marked a sharp reversal from Friday, when Trump told reporters at Camp David that the fund was dead, though he added, "I wish it weren't."

Tillis fires back

Tillis responded on X within hours, calling the fund a "payout pot for punks" and declaring that Blanche would not be confirmed because of Trump's reversal.

Despite comments as late as yesterday that the fund is dead, President Trump clearly intends to resurrect the payout pot for punks either by inappropriately establishing another bogus fund or pushing Congress to vote for a bill that the majority of Republicans in the Senate would be against.

Tillis added that he considers Blanche qualified for the job but said, "Hopefully, we can resolve this by Tuesday." Cornyn's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

What comes next

The Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a meeting for Tuesday, 4 August, for a possible vote on Blanche's nomination. Even if the committee deadlocks, Blanche could remain as acting attorney general indefinitely, as long as his nomination is pending and not formally rejected or withdrawn. Trump has previously said he could resubmit the nomination next year after Cornyn and Tillis leave office. The legislative path for the fund appears narrow: members of both parties remain deeply skeptical, and a bill would likely fail in the Senate.