Booker-Led Spotlight Forum Exposes Todd Blanche is Unfit to Lead Department of Justice and Should be Fired

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) convened a spotlight forum with fellow Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) Democrats to lay out the case against Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, arguing that he is unfit to lead the Department of Justice and should not be confirmed to the position permanently. The forum examined how Blanche's tenure has undermined the rule of law, failed Jeffrey Epstein's survivors, and hollowed out the Department's independence - installing an Acting Attorney General who has put the President's interests ahead of his constitutional oath.

Joining Booker were SJC's Ranking Member, Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Peter Welch (D-VT), and Adam Schiff (D-CA).

The senators heard from four witnesses:

• Perry A. Carbone, former Chief of the Criminal Division in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, former Chief of the White Plains Division, and former Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey. He served as Co-Chief of the White Plains Division alongside Todd Blanche.
• Liz Stein, human trafficking survivor, advocate, and one of the most prominent public voices among survivors of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, who recently met with Blanche.
• Claire Finkelstein, Algernon Biddle Professor of Law and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, and founder and faculty director of the Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law (CERL), a nonpartisan interdisciplinary institute affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania.
• Peter Carr, Director of Communications at Justice Connection; former Public Information Officer and Acting Director of Public Affairs at the Department of Justice; and spokesman for Special Counsels Jack Smith and Robert Mueller.

"Todd Blanche is not fit to serve as the nation's chief law enforcement officer," said Senator Booker. "He mishandled Epstein survivor records, exposing survivors to further trauma. He turned the Justice Department into a shield for President Trump and a sword against his enemies. And he ran a slush fund so unlawful that even my Republican colleagues are begging him to shut it down. An Attorney General who has to be talked out of misconduct he's already committed doesn't deserve a promotion - he deserves to be fired."

"Todd Blanche only agreed to meet the Epstein survivors after his nomination was jeopardized, and even then, he deflected blame for the botched release of the Epstein files and failed to present a plan to protect victims while pursuing perpetrators," said Ranking Member Durbin. "Even beyond the Epstein files cover-up, he has enabled the weaponization of DOJ, eroding public confidence in the institution. Todd Blanche is a danger to the Constitution and rule of law."

"The MAGA Department of Justice is a disgrace. More than 10,000 lawyers have fled or been forced out, often after being asked to carry out illegal or unethical orders. Todd Blanche is at the center of the rot. If he becomes the next attorney general, Blanche - once Trump's personal criminal defense attorney - will wield the Department of Justice against the president's personal and political enemies, at the expense of the American people," said Senator Whitehouse.

"From the botched release of the Epstein files to the attacks on Donald Trump's perceived political enemies, the Department of Justice under Todd Blanche has been transformed into the Department of Corruption and Retribution," said Senator Hirono. "Todd Blanche has made it abundantly clear that his client is Donald Trump-not the American people. I will continue urging my colleagues to vote against his nomination."

"Todd Blanche made it perfectly clear in his nomination hearing and his track record at the Department of Justice that his loyalty lies with President Trump. The president's political and financial interests will come before the American people. Todd Blanche's laundry list of ethical violations, corrupt dealings, and penchant for political prosecutions is a nightmare scenario for the rule of law in America," said Senator Welch. "I urge all of my colleagues to stand steadfast in opposing his nomination to serve as Attorney General."

"Todd Blanche has allowed the President to abuse the Department of Justice to go after his political enemies with absurd 'seashells' cases, engaged in the most blatant self-dealing by representing both Trump and his government in his scam IRS tax immunity deal, and blessed a corrupt slush fund for cop beaters. This is hardly the stuff of Attorney Generals. Today's hearing provided other critical voices to explain why the Senate must vigorously oppose his confirmation," said Senator Schiff.
"The Department of Justice cannot fulfill its mission unless the American people believe its decisions are made independently guided by the facts and the law, not by politics or personal loyalty," said Perry Carbone, former Chief of the Criminal Division in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, Chief of the White Plains Division, and Assistant U.S. Attorney in the District of New Jersey. "Without that independence, public confidence in the rule of law begins to erode."

"After refusing to acknowledge Epstein survivors for nine months, Todd Blanche finally met with us in what was clearly a check-the-box exercise intended to secure the vote of Sen. Thom Tillis," said Liz Stein, Epstein survivor. "I left that meeting with even greater concerns about Todd Blanche's fitness to lead the Justice Department. He repeatedly interrupted survivors, refused to take responsibility for the department's mishandling of the Epstein files and offered no credible plan to investigate anyone beyond Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Survivors deserve an attorney general who will pursue accountability wherever the evidence leads, not one who treats us as a political obstacle. Sens. Tillis and Cornyn - and every member of the Senate - should vote no on Todd Blanche's nomination for attorney general."

"Todd Blanche's legacy to date suggests he is unfit to serve the country as attorney general. His undivided loyalty to a self-serving president, whose interests he defends above all else, have created professional conflicts that can only be addressed through a debilitating commitment to extensive recusal. As attorney general, Mr. Blanche would have to choose between abandoning his professional integrity and rendering himself ineffectual by his own extensive need to recuse. Dishonest or ineffectual - either way Mr. Blanche is not an appropriate choice for attorney general," said Claire Finkelstein, Algernon Biddle Professor of Law and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, and founder and faculty director of the Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law (CERL), a nonpartisan interdisciplinary institute affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania.
"Firings under Todd Blanche's leadership send an unmistakable message: agents, analysts, lawyers, and even spokespeople can be fired simply because of their assigned cases," said Peter Carr, Director of Communications, Justice Connection; former Public Information Officer and Acting Director of Public Affairs for the Department of Justice, and spokesman for Special Counsels Jack Smith and Robert Mueller."Agents or prosecutors who think they'll be fired for their cases are less likely to accept difficult assignments. And they might start looking more at the long-term consequences of an investigation for their careers, rather than at the facts and the law. That's not the justice we should want for our country."

Today's forum builds on Senator Booker's ongoing oversight of the Department of Justice and his repeated efforts to obtain information from Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche regarding the Department's handling of the Epstein files, its adherence to ethical obligations, and actions that threaten the Department's independence. Most of those requests have been ignored. In recent months, Senator Booker has sent multiple oversight letters, pressed Department officials for answers, and introduced legislation aimed at strengthening accountability and restoring public trust in the Justice Department.

WATCH A RECORDING OF THE FORUM HERE.

SEE ALSO:

• ICYMI: Booker "Brings the Heat" at Confirmation Hearing, Tells AG Nominee Blanche: "This Is a Performance Review - And You Failed"
• At Confirmation Hearing, Booker Presses Blanche on Independence, Epstein Survivors, and DOJ's Targeting of the President's Political Opponents
• QUICK CLIP: Ahead of Blanche Hearing, Booker Highlights How "Trump's Personal Lawyer" is "Opposed By Chorus of People Across the Political Spectrum"
• Booker and Jayapal Introduce REDACT Act to Protect Epstein Survivors and Strengthen Accountability for DOJ Privacy Violations
• Booker, Senate Judiciary Democrats Demand Todd Blanche Answer Dozens of Oversight Requests Ignored by DOJ
• Booker, Colleagues Sound Alarm on Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and Call on Judiciary Chairman to Hold Scheduled DOJ Oversight Hearing
• Booker, Cassidy Demand Answers on DOJ Settlement That Hands the President Immunity from Federal Prosecution
• Booker, Schiff, Warren Urge FCC to Halt Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger Over National Security Risks