Lead

Two Republican senators who had threatened to block Todd Blanche's bid to become attorney general permanently have announced they will advance his nomination after he confirmed in writing that a planned $1.8bn fund for Donald Trump's allies had been scrapped. The move clears the way for Blanche, who is already acting attorney general, to be confirmed by the US Senate.

The US Senate judiciary committee is due to vote on Tuesday on whether to approve Blanche's nomination and send it to the wider Senate for a vote. Outgoing lawmakers John Cornyn and Thom Tillis, two key holdouts on the committee who have repeatedly clashed with Trump, said their concerns were resolved after a "successful negotiation of a legally enforceable document", released by Blanche late on Sunday.

Coverage Comparison

Reporting on the development has come from BBC and The Guardian, which have detailed the sequence of events and the reactions of key senators. Both outlets agree that the scrapping of the $1.8bn "anti-weaponisation" fund was a decisive factor in winning over the two holdout Republicans.

The Guardian's reporting highlights the document's formal termination of the fund and its clarification that Trump and his family will not receive indefinite protection from audits of future tax filings. The BBC reports that Blanche formally withdrew the plan and that the move clears the way for his confirmation, noting that the two senators were not previously satisfied by verbal assurances alone.

Key Claims

The $1.8bn "anti-weaponisation" fund was announced earlier this year as part of a settlement in a lawsuit Trump filed against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) over the unauthorised leak of his tax returns. The fund would have allowed Trump allies to claim compensation for what they say were politically motivated prosecutions by previous administrations.

Blanche issued a formal order late on Sunday terminating the fund. In a post on X, he said he had "met with committee members and Senators over the past several weeks and addressed any concerns or outstanding questions". Attached to his post was a copy of the signed order, which states: "This Order establishes, beyond any doubt, that there is no Fund."

The order also clarifies that the audit settlement is limited to the plaintiffs and does not extend beyond the defendants in the lawsuit, the IRS and the Treasury. This addressed concerns shared by multiple Republican senators, according to a joint statement from Cornyn and Tillis.

The fund plan and the tax audit provision had prompted alarm among Democrats and some Republicans, who argued it could result in payments to people prosecuted over the US Capitol riot on 6 January 2021, including those convicted of assaulting police officers. Following backlash, Blanche abandoned the plan, and a federal judge blocked the fund, expressing concerns that it breached ethical guidelines.

Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska announced early Friday that she will not vote for Blanche's nomination. She expressed concerns that the Trump administration could proceed with the proposed fund to compensate rioters who invaded the US Capitol on January 6. Murkowski took her stance even though Blanche confirmed in writing that the fund was dead; experts say Trump could easily reverse the decision. Murkowski wrote on X that she does not have confidence that Blanche will "check the worst impulses of this administration".

Perspectives

John Cornyn and Thom Tillis, the two Republican senators who had been holdouts, expressed satisfaction with the written order. In a joint statement, they said: "We are pleased that the Department of Justice has issued a formal order terminating the anti-weaponization fund." They also noted that the department had acknowledged in a binding written order that the audit settlement is limited in scope, addressing concerns shared by their Republican colleagues.

Lisa Murkowski, the Alaska Republican, announced her opposition, saying she hopes Blanche will be able to check the administration's worst impulses if confirmed but that she lacks confidence he will do so. The Senate currently has leverage over the fund only because Blanche's nomination is pending confirmation, Murkowski said.