President Trump Considers Delaying Attorney General Nomination Amid Tax Settlement Dispute

The confirmation of the nation's top law enforcement official is currently stalled due to a dispute over a legal settlement that grants the President and his family immunity from tax audits and previously proposed a $1.776 billion fund for political allies.

• •President Trump suggested he may withdraw Todd Blanche's nomination for Attorney General and resubmit it after Senators Cornyn and Tillis leave office next year.
• •The dispute centers on a tax lawsuit settlement that grants the President and his family immunity from tax audits.
• •The settlement previously included a $1.776 billion 'Anti-Weaponization Fund' intended to compensate Trump allies, which the Justice Department has since dropped.
• •Senators Cornyn and Tillis are demanding written assurances that the 'Anti-Weaponization Fund' is permanently cancelled.
• •Senators are requesting that the tax audit immunity provision be modified to apply only to existing audits rather than future tax filings.
• •Todd Blanche can continue to lead the Justice Department as acting attorney general or in his confirmed role as deputy attorney general even if his nomination for the full-time post is withdrawn.
• •All Democratic senators are currently opposed to Blanche's nomination.
• •A single Republican holdout on the Senate Judiciary Committee could prevent the nomination from advancing to the full Senate.