News summary produced by Claude AI
Liz Oyer, a former pardon attorney, appeared before the Senate judiciary committee to oppose the nomination of Todd Blanche as attorney general. Oyer stated that she was terminated from her position after declining to recommend restoring firearms rights to actor Mel Gibson, who had been convicted of domestic violence. She characterized her refusal as declining to “rubber-stamp a political favor for a friend of the president.”
During his confirmation hearing testimony on Wednesday, Blanche disputed Oyer’s characterization of events. He stated that her termination was not connected to her position on the Gibson matter, instead attributing her departure to decisions she made as pardon attorney during the final weeks and months of the previous administration. According to Blanche, these decisions were inconsistent with the current president’s authority.
Oyer responded to Blanche’s testimony on Thursday, calling his claims “provably false” and asserting that documents and evidence contradicted his account. She urged the Senate to reject Blanche’s nomination, warning that his appointment would further damage the justice system. Oyer characterized the attorney general’s office under Blanche as functioning “as Donald Trump’s personal law firm” and accused him of using law enforcement powers to pursue grievances held by the president at the expense of departmental credibility and resources.