00:00The Office of Attorney General is one of the most challenging jobs in the cabinet.
00:06You are, at the same time, the people's lawyer, as Senator Durbin has said,
00:10while you are a member of the President's cabinet,
00:13subject to being dismissed at the pleasure of the President.
00:17It is a very challenging balance to strike, to be sure.
00:24The tax lawsuit that was filed by President Trump and his son and the Trump Organization in January of 2026
00:33was what prosecutors called unparalleled in the IRS's history.
00:40A contractor with Bose Hamilton got the job at the IRS for the express purpose of leaking tax returns,
00:50private tax returns, of people he thought the public needed to know about.
00:56That is a violation of the criminal law.
00:59And the contractor is currently serving a five-year term in the federal penitentiary for that.
01:07Initially, when the President filed suit, he sought $10 billion in damages.
01:14That is nowhere to be found in the final settlement.
01:17The settlement documents also created a roughly $1.8 billion weaponization fund.
01:25That is no longer part of the settlement.
01:30I've been very clear, as others have, that in order to support Mr. Blanche's nomination,
01:38I needed specific assurances in writing about a release signed by the Acting Attorney General last May.
01:46I asked for written assurances that clarifies the scope of the parties to the IRS audit agreement
01:54and that permanently ends the weaponization fund.
01:58While this may sound like nitpicking to some, it's critically important not only to me but to other members of
02:05the Senate.
02:05What Mr. Blanche said under oath in his nomination hearing on these topics was important.
02:13He said under oath, subject to the penalties of perjury, that the release he signed only applies to the IRS
02:21and the Treasury
02:22and only the parties who were defendants and the plaintiffs.
02:26And he also said once more that the weaponization fund was dead.
02:33This past Sunday, Senator Tillis and I came to an agreement after numerous meetings with the Department of Justice and
02:40Mr. Blanche
02:40on an agency interpretative guidance document that reaffirms what Mr. Blanche said in his sworn testimony in front of the
02:49committee.
02:50This document will help limit the substance and scope of the audit protection to the defendants in the lawsuit, the
03:00IRS, and the Treasury.
03:01And it limits it to the parties to the audit settlement.
03:05It limits the parties to the audit settlement to the plaintiffs, the people who brought the lawsuit and no one
03:12else.
03:12And importantly, it was stated to be retroactive, not prospective, doesn't apply to future audits,
03:21but does settle all claims that were subject to the lawsuit and those that could have been brought in that
03:27lawsuit.
03:29And again, importantly, it ends the weaponization fund.
03:34The DOJ has repeatedly said that this is their legal position and interpretation,
03:40including filings in the Floyd v. Department of Justice in the Eastern District of Virginia
03:46and Dunn v. Trump and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington v. Trump in the District of Columbia.
03:53They've been consistent about their assertion on behalf of the United States of America
04:00that the weaponization fund is dead.
04:03And of course, I expect them to live up to that in any future litigation.
04:08Given this agreement with Mr. Blanche, I expect the department to live up to this in future litigation,
04:19and I will vote to advance him out of the committee today.
04:22But my vote to advance Mr. Blanche's nomination goes beyond this document.
04:28We need a stabilizing force at the Department of Justice,
04:33and Mr. Blanche deserves the opportunity to provide that as opposed to continuing to serve in an acting capacity
04:40and as the Deputy Attorney General.
04:42The Department of Justice does not need a temporary, unconfirmed nominee as our nation's top law enforcement officer.
04:51President Trump needs someone in this role as well with a strong legal mind,
04:56but who also is close enough to him to give him confidential legal advice to tell him hard truths.
05:03I thought what Mr. Blanche said during this hearing was very important.
05:07He said, I can give the President confidential legal advice, but of course, he doesn't have to follow it.
05:14He was elected President of the United States and not me.
05:20That's the fact.
05:21I would advise Mr. Blanche not to be afraid to capitalize on that earned trust when necessary for the good
05:28of the country.
05:29I want to thank him for being willing to work with us, Senator Tillis and me,
05:33and I want to commend my staff, led by Francie Rooney and others, for their hard work on these negotiations.
05:39I'm glad we could address these issues here in the committee so that this nomination can move forward,
05:46and I'm grateful to the Chairman for giving me and Senator Tillis the latitude to do so.
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