Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, July 15, 2026.
Allison Robbert/AP Photos
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WASHINGTON — Todd Blanche's nomination to become attorney general stalled Wednesday as lawmakers scrapped a planned committee vote after key Republicans demanded more assurances about the settlement of President Donald Trump's lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service.
The Senate Judiciary Committee had been expected to vote Thursday on whether to advance Blanche's nomination to the full chamber. But resistance from two Republican senators on the committee who could block Blanche's nomination threw his confirmation into doubt.
A spokesperson for the committee said in a statement Wednesday night that the vote would be postponed "as work continues to secure sufficient support." The delay came after hours of negotiations between the Justice Department and Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Thom Tillis over the controversial settlement that afforded Trump and members of his family protection from tax audits.
At the center of the fight is the resolution of Trump's $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS. It included a deal to drop tax claims against the president and a now-scrapped plan to create a $1.776 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund" to compensate people who believe they were wronged by the Justice Department. The department said in June that it was no longer moving forward with the "Anti-Weaponization Fund" amid bipartisan outrage, but officials have said the audit immunity agreement remains i