Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche met with Republican Senators Bill Cassidy and Lisa Murkowski on Capitol Hill Wednesday afternoon, as they consider whether to support his nomination to serve as attorney general, according to sources cited by ABC News.

Blanche's confirmation hinges on securing nearly all GOP votes, as he can afford to lose only one Republican vote to be confirmed. Senator Susan Collins announced Tuesday that she would vote against Blanche when the nomination reaches the Senate floor, possibly by the end of the week.

Senator Cassidy expressed concerns about "lawfare" at the Department of Justice, referring to prosecutions influenced by political anger from high office, presumably President Donald Trump. Cassidy also emphasized the need to be convinced that Blanche is an attorney general who "just happens to have once been President Trump's personal attorney," rather than the reverse, in comments made to SiriusXM.

Senators John Cornyn and Thom Tillis, who had previously opposed Blanche's confirmation over issues related to President Trump's IRS immunity deal and the administration's $1.8 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund," voted to advance Blanche out of committee to a Senate floor vote after reaching an agreement with Blanche. Cornyn noted that despite the agreement lacking language to prevent the fund's resurrection under a different name or method, the Department of Justice has been "consistent" in asserting that the fund is dead.

With Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell absent and Democrats opposing the nomination, a "no" vote from either Cassidy or Murkowski could derail Blanche's confirmation.

Sources