Todd Blanche, former defense lawyer for Donald Trump, is poised for confirmation as U.S. attorney general. However, numerous survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse have raised alarms that a Justice Department under Blanche’s leadership could derail their pursuit of justice.

In a letter to Republican senators Thom Tillis and John Cornyn urging them to reject Blanche’s nomination, survivors criticized his tenure as acting attorney general overseeing the Epstein case, describing it as marked by repeated missteps. They allege Blanche, who led the disclosure of documents under the bipartisan Epstein Files Transparency Act, released survivors’ names, photos, and identifying information but omitted the names of accused abusers and enablers.

Despite over 1,000 teenage girls and women being abused, only Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell have faced charges, survivors noted. In a recent meeting arranged by Senator Tillis, survivors reported experiencing "an hour of deflection, interruption and gaslighting."

Legal experts echo these concerns. Bryan Sullivan, partner at Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae, stated that based on Blanche’s judiciary committee testimony, his confirmation would likely result in "more suppression and no active investigations" into Epstein’s sex trafficking. Carl Tobias, Williams Chair in Law at the University of Richmond School of Law, added that even if Blanche is not confirmed, he could remain acting attorney general for the remainder of Trump’s term, maintaining control over the Epstein case.

Sullivan also highlighted the slow pace of legal recourse, noting that filing lawsuits over Freedom of Information Act requests is a lengthy process. Meanwhile, Carlson emphasized that "everyone should have questions about Todd Blanche being attorney general, just about the Epstein issues," and acknowledged that responsibility should not fall solely on survivors or advocates.

One survivor expressed uncertainty about who might continue the work of Republican congressman Tom Massie on Epstein-related matters, stating, "We don’t know who’s going to potentially step up to the plate and say, ‘You know what, I’m going to take over the work that Tom Massie was doing on this.'"

Sources