President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer Todd Blanche took a key step on Tuesday towards becoming the top US law enforcement officer after a Senate panel approved his nomination to head the Justice Department.
The 12-10 vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee was along party lines and came after two Republican senators dropped their opposition to Blanche’s nomination.
Blanche’s Senate confirmation had been held up by concerns from senators John Cornyn and Thom Tillis over a $1.8 billion fund for alleged victims of politically motivated prosecution and a tax audit immunity deal with the Republican president.
Blanche issued a written order over the weekend scrapping the so-called “anti-weaponization fund” and said the audit immunity agreement with Trump, his two eldest sons and the Trump Organization would only apply “retroactively” to past tax years and not future filings.
The full Senate, where Republicans hold a majority, is expected to vote later
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