US Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Sunday that he would not commit to ensuring the federal Justice Department always operates independently from the White House and President Trump. When asked by NBC’s Meet the Press whether he could make such a pledge, Blanche responded negatively and argued that no attorney general should be expected to do so.
Blanche asserted that Trump would never ask him to undertake actions that violate ethical or legal standards. He stated that he has sworn to uphold the Constitution, as have all cabinet secretaries and previous attorneys general. Blanche characterized criticism about potential presidential interference as a false narrative promoted primarily by political opponents and media outlets.
Legal experts challenged Blanche’s position. Barb McQuade, a University of Michigan law professor, described the attorney general’s stance as a departure from the Justice Department’s traditional independence, particularly following the Watergate scandal that led to President Richard Nixon’s resignation in 1974. McQuade wrote on social media that the department “as we once knew it, is no more.”
Blanche’s comments came days after his narrow confirmation by the US Senate in a 50-49 vote to succeed Pam Bondi, with all Democrats voting against his nomination. Blanche previously worked as Trump’s criminal defense attorney during the president’s state trial, which resulted in his conviction on 34 felony counts related to business records. During the same television appearance, Blanche defended Trump’s pardons of Capitol attack participants and declined to address whether any pardoned individuals might receive settlements from the federal government.
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