Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) has declined to commit support for the confirmation of Todd Blanche as U.S. attorney general, citing unresolved issues with a settlement agreement between the Department of Justice and President Donald Trump involving a planned “weaponization fund” aimed at providing restitution to victims of politically-motivated prosecutions under former President Joe Biden.
Blanche, who previously served as Trump’s personal attorney and has held the role of acting attorney general since April of this year, was formally nominated by the president in June for the permanent position.
The core issue centers on a settlement that resolved a $10 billion lawsuit filed by Trump against the IRS over the leak of his tax records. The agreement included provisions granting immunity from IRS audits of past tax returns for Trump, certain family members, and related businesses.
It also referenced the creation of a fund valued at approximately $1.776 billion to $1.8 billion, which has been described by the administration as an “anti-weaponization” fund intended to provide compensation to individuals who were targeted by the Biden DOJ. This includes January 6 protesters, pro-life activists and other prominent conservative figures who were targeted in politically-motivated prosecutions.
Fake news alert: there is no “deal” on Blanche nom. They know what they have to do.
— Senator John Cornyn (@JohnCornyn) July 28, 2026
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Blanche has stated repeatedly that the fund is not proceeding after backlash from Cornyn and other Republican senators, including Thom Tillis (R-NC). “Meaning there is no weaponization fund. The weaponization fund is dead. It’s not moving forward,” Blanche testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 15.
Cornyn questioned Blanche closely on this point during the hearing. “On page four, ‘this settlement agreement may be modified only upon the written agreement of the parties.’ Has there been a written agreement of the party to modify the settlement fund?” the senator asked.
Blanche responded that there had not been such a modification. Cornyn then asked whether the settlement was enforceable as a contract, to which Blanche affirmed it was.
After the hearing, Cornyn told CNN that Blanche “basically confirmed that it’s not dead.” He further explained, “That it cannot be changed without written consent of the parties, according to the settlement agreement, there is no written consent of the parties and he agreed that it could be enforced as a matter of contract.” When asked if this concerned him, Cornyn replied in the affirmative.
“I continue to have some concerns, but I’m not going to make any decisions at this point,” he added.
Cornyn has maintained that verbal assurances and testimony are insufficient without corresponding changes to the settlement documents. “That’s what we’re trying to get them to agree to, which is again what his sworn testimony was,” the outgoing senator told reporters on Tuesday.
“We just need for the documents to conform to what his testimony was at the hearing where he said the weaponization fund is dead, he said the immunity from future audits does not extend to people beyond the parties to the lawsuit, and he said it wasn’t intended to release further actions by other agencies other than the IRS.” When asked whether Blanche should not count on his vote until the settlement is changed, Cornyn replied, “That is correct.”
As of Tuesday, the committee is expected to vote on Blanche’s nomination by the end of the month. All Democrats are expected to oppose the nomination, meaning that Blanche will likely need support from both Tillis and Cornyn to advance to a floor vote.
