DOJ Kills $1.8 Billion ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’ to Save Blanche’s Nomination

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche formally rescinded the Justice Department’s $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” late Sunday in a bid to secure his Senate confirmation as attorney general. The fund had been designed to compensate individuals the administration determined were victims of political targeting by prior Justice Department actions [1]. Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, both members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, had withheld their votes pending written assurance the fund was dead, holding real leverage given the GOP’s one-seat majority on the panel [2]. After Blanche’s rescission, Cornyn and Tillis issued a joint statement Monday saying they would vote to advance the nomination out of committee, with a full committee vote expected Tuesday [3]. CNN reported that the concessions extracted by the two senators contain loopholes that could allow elements of the fund’s underlying function to persist in another form [4].

Why It Sucks:

MAGA Base / Trump Loyalists

• The retribution fund just vanished. A $1.8 billion pot meant to compensate people the administration says were unfairly targeted by prior DOJ investigations is now dead, leaving those self-described victims with nothing [1].
• A campaign promise quietly abandoned. The fund was framed as a signature accountability measure against a “weaponized” Justice Department, and its rescission looks to the base like a bargaining chip traded away for a Cabinet seat [1, 2].
• Confirmation politics trumped principle. Supporters worry Blanche caved to two senators who are both already leaving Congress, rather than standing firm on a policy the administration once called essential [2].

Cornyn and Tillis / Institutionalist Republicans

• It still took months of leverage to win. Despite holding the deciding votes on a one-seat majority committee, the senators had to publicly withhold support for weeks before getting written assurance the fund was actually terminated [2, 3].
• The victory may not be complete. Reporting indicates the concessions contain loopholes that could let the fund’s mechanics survive in a different form, meaning the fight isn’t necessarily over [4].
• Their own party fought them on it. Two Republicans had to publicly break with their party’s Justice Department nominee over what they viewed as a taxpayer-funded slush fund, straining relationships heading into their final months in office [3].

Democrats / DOJ Watchdogs

• The whole negotiation was retribution politics. Critics argue the fund should never have existed in the first place, and its rescission doesn’t erase concerns that Blanche’s DOJ was built around settling political scores [1].
• Confirmation now looks like a done deal. With Cornyn and Tillis on board, Blanche is expected to clear committee and likely the full Senate, with Democrats unable to stop a nominee they see as insufficiently independent [3].
• Loopholes mean the threat isn’t gone. Even with the fund formally dead, reported gaps in the concessions suggest the underlying apparatus for compensating political allies could resurface [4].

Sources & Citations:

[1] NPR: Blanche rescinds $1.8B anti-weaponization fund in push for confirmation
[2] CBS News: Cornyn and Tillis back Blanche for attorney general after deal on “anti-weaponization” fund
[3] The Hill: Cornyn reaches deal on ‘anti-weaponization fund’ to allow Blanche nomination to advance
[4] CNN: The major loopholes in Todd Blanche’s concessions to Cornyn and Tillis