How will the newly confirmed Attorney General navigate the voided billion-dollar IRS settlement and restore institutional stability?

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Todd Blanche’s path is narrow: he will have to formally separate the Justice Department from the collapsed Trump-IRS settlement, comply with the courts, and show that normal institutional processes—not ad hoc political arrangements—are back in charge. On the settlement, the immediate task is legal cleanup. A federal judge has voided the roughly $1.8 billion agreement, barred reliance on it in future proceedings, and cast doubt on the legality of both the audit protections and the proposed “anti-weaponization” fund. Blanche had already told senators and a court that no fund was operating, no money had been transferred, and no claims process existed. As attorney general, he is likely to have to make that position durable: withdraw or supersede disputed directives, instruct department lawyers not to invoke the voided deal, and coordinate with Treasury and the IRS so ordinary tax administration can proceed under standard law. Restoring stability at DOJ is the harder test. His confirmation debate exposed bipartisan concern about leadership independence, turnover among career lawyers, and rapid shifts in enforcement priorities. To steady the department, Blanche would need to rely more heavily on career leadership, reestablish clear recusal and ethics guardrails, and give written assurances that politically sensitive matters will follow ordinary review channels. Transparent internal guidance and consistent court-facing positions will matter more than rhetoric. The broader measure o…

Cassidy Backs Todd Blanche for Attorney General, Giving Trump the 51st Senate Vote

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Cassidy Backs Todd Blanche for Attorney General, Giving Trump the 51st Senate Vote

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