Democrats Blast New Attorney General as "Enabler of Corruption"

The U.S. Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as Attorney General early Saturday morning. Every Democrat in the Senate voted against him, but Republicans had enough votes to approve him anyway. Democrats argued that Blanche, who was once President Trump's personal lawyer, would not be an independent leader of the Department of Justice (DOJ). The Attorney General is the top law enforcement official in the United States.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York was one of the loudest critics. He said having the president's personal lawyer run the DOJ was a clear sign of corruption. 'If you want to wipe out corruption, you can't have the president's personal attorney as the Attorney General,' Schumer wrote on social media. He also said every senator who voted to confirm Blanche had made themselves an 'enabler' of wrongdoing. Schumer called Blanche's confirmation a green light for what he described as widespread corruption in the Trump administration.

Other Democratic senators shared similar concerns. Sen. Alex Padilla of California said Blanche would always be 'Trump's personal lawyer — not the American people's lawyer.' Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware said Blanche's loyalty was to protecting Trump's allies, not to the law. Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada accused Blanche of mishandling the release of files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. She said the American people deserve an attorney general who puts the Constitution first.

The Epstein files became a major issue during the debate over Blanche's confirmation. Epstein was a wealthy man who was convicted of sex crimes against many victims. The DOJ released files about his case, but survivors of his crimes said the department did not properly hide sensitive personal information. They said this put victims at risk. A group of those survivors urged the Senate to vote against Blanche before the vote took place.

Sen. Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico spoke up for the Epstein survivors. He said the DOJ under Blanche's leadership had failed to give them the justice they deserved. 'The survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's horrific crimes deserve transparency and accountability,' Luján wrote. He also accused Blanche of putting Trump's personal interests ahead of justice for victims. Luján announced he voted no on the confirmation.

Democrats in the House of Representatives also spoke out, even though they do not get to vote on nominations like this one. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Republicans confirmed Trump's personal lawyer 'under the cover of darkness.' House Democrats on the Oversight Committee asked their Republican committee chair to bring Blanche in to testify under oath. They want him to answer questions about the Epstein files and other decisions he made at the DOJ.

Not all Republicans supported Blanche. Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine were the only Republicans to vote against him. Collins said the DOJ had become 'increasingly political' under Blanche and that he had weakened the department's independence. Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky was absent and did not vote because he has been recovering from a fall he suffered in June. The final vote showed that most Republicans backed Blanche despite the strong opposition from Democrats.