Todd Blanche, Donald Trump's former personal criminal defense attorney, was sworn in as attorney general Monday — placing the man who defended Trump in the Manhattan hush-money case at the head of the same Justice Department that spent years prosecuting him.
The 52-year-old was confirmed in a 50-49 Senate vote early Saturday, with every Democrat plus Republican Senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski voting no. Blanche had served as acting attorney general since April, when Trump ousted Pam Bondi — frustrated, The Guardian reported, with what the president saw as insufficient DOJ action against his political foes.
For Americans who watched federal law enforcement get weaponized against a sitting president and his allies, the confirmation puts a man in the attorney general's chair who experienced that weaponization firsthand. The permanent Washington class has reason to be nervous.
Blanche inherits a department already in upheaval. Under his watch as acting AG, more than 200 prosecutors and agents who worked on Trump-related investigations have departed, according to The Guardian. CNN reported that Blanche has played a key role in reshaping the department to "align more closely with the president's agenda," advancing legal arguments that expand presidential authority and overseeing large-scale firings of career prosecutors.
The swearing-in was held without press access in the Oval Office. Judge Emil Bove — Blanche's former colleague on Trump's defense team, later his top deputy at DOJ, and now a federal appeals court judge — administered the oath. CNN described Bove as having earned a reputation as "Trump's hatchet man" at the department, leading the first waves of mass ousters. In one notable episode, Bove axed prosecutors in New York and Washington who refused to sign court documents dropping corruption charges against former New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
FBI Director Kash Patel and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller also attended — a roster that underscores how thoroughly Trump's orbit now controls the federal law enforcement apparatus.
The establishment press framed the story through different lenses. The Guardian emphasized Blanche's "string of courtroom setbacks," including a federal judge who sent her findings to bar authorities considering disciplinary action against him. CNN noted that Blanche's legal strategy has "made judges across the nation question the department's decisions." Neither outlet dwelled on the institutional abuses that made such an aggressive housecleaning politically viable.
The Epstein files remain unfinished business. The Guardian reported that Bondi's tenure was "dogged by controversy over the botched handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files," with lawmakers still pressing for the full release of records. Democrats have accused Blanche of "following Bondi's playbook of stonewalling survivors and Congress alike." The public's right to know who was connected to one of the most prolific sex traffickers in American history now rests with a man Trump trusts — and the country will judge whether that trust is earned.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted "Congratulations to a great lawyer and an even better man!!!" following the closed-door confirmation. Blanche told CNN he was "feeling good" as he left the Justice Department for the White House.
The question now is whether Blanche delivers the accountability that voters expect — or whether the courts, the bar authorities, and the permanent bureaucracy grind the effort to a halt. The narrow Senate margin, the judicial pushback, and the unresolved Epstein files all suggest the hardest fights are still ahead.
