US President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, Todd Blanche, has been narrowly confirmed as the United States attorney general, the nation's top law enforcement official, following a 50-49 Senate vote on Saturday, August 8th, 2026. The confirmation concludes a lengthy dispute between Senate Republicans and the Trump administration. Blanche had been serving as acting attorney general since April.

Two Republican senators, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, joined all Democrats in opposing Blanche's nomination. Senator Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican known for his previous vote to convict Trump during the 2021 second impeachment over the January 6 Capitol riot, cast the deciding vote in favor of confirmation.

Concerns raised by some Republican senators included Blanche's handling of the release of Jeffrey Epstein-related documents and his involvement in establishing Trump's $1.8 billion "anti-weaponisation" fund. This fund was intended to compensate individuals alleging government persecution, but critics, including Murkowski, feared it might benefit those prosecuted for participating in the January 6, 2021, attack on Congress. Blanche pledged to retract the fund following pushback during his confirmation hearings.

Collins also expressed reservations about Blanche's role in settling Trump's $10 billion lawsuit with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) but ultimately trusted him to provide candid legal advice to the president.

After the vote, Blanche stated he was "deeply honoured by the trust and confidence President Trump has placed in me." The confirmation is seen as giving Blanche greater leverage to "push for things that should be pushed for" and to "check the worst impulses of this administration."

This confirmation is not viewed as a referendum on President Trump but rather a decision regarding Blanche in specific circumstances.

Sources