WATCH: Padilla Presses Attorney General Nominee Todd Blanche During Confirmation Hearing

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) questioned President Trump's nominee for U.S. Attorney General, Todd Blanche, during a Senate Judiciary confirmation hearing. Blanche was President Trump's personal attorney in several criminal cases, including Trump's New York hush money trial, in which the President was convicted of 34 felony counts. Blanche currently serves as Acting Attorney General and has overseen the Trump Administration's $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund that could compensate or financially reward convicted January 6 insurrectionists.

During the hearing, Padilla questioned Blanche about the Department of Justice's (DOJ) failure to seek justice in federal immigration related shootings, including the shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good. Padilla highlighted that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents involved in the killings of American citizens have not faced justice and demanded transparent investigations from the DOJ into all such shootings.

Padilla also demanded answers about Trump's planned "anti-weaponization" slush fund, emphasizing Blanche's role in the Administration's plan to compensate or financially reward convicted January 6 insurrectionists. When Blanche claimed that the slush fund no longer exists, Padilla countered by noting that January 6 insurrectionists are seeking payouts through other avenues, like the Federal Tort Claims Act. Padilla slammed Blanche for failing to respond to repeated congressional inquiries regarding this slush fund. Blanche agreed that January 6 rioters who have committed federal crimes following the insurrection should be investigated and prosecuted and said that DOJ will "always vigorously defend our cases," including against tort claims brought by January 6 insurrectionists.

He then pressed Blanche about the DOJ's substantial funding delays affecting the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW). He questioned Blanche on the DOJ's timeline for grant approvals, and highlighted that as a result of the delays, many organizations have been forced to lay off staff and reduce services for domestic violence victims.

Padilla concluded by stressing his lack of confidence in Blanche's ability to operate in a non-partisan manner, including his ability to hold the Trump Administration accountable given his prior allegiance to Trump.

Padilla has fought to hold Trump's Department of Justice (DOJ) accountable. This month, Padilla, along with Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), led fourteen Senators in urging Blanche and the DOJ halt any efforts to compensate January 6 rioters and commit to defending taxpayers in any January 6-related lawsuits. In May, Padilla slammed Blanche for establishing the $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" slush fund and highlighted that the slush fund could be used to compensate or financially reward convicted January 6 insurrectionists. Last year, Padilla voted against advancing Blanche for U.S. Deputy Attorney General and warned against nominating Trump's allies who refuse to commit to upholding key constitutional provisions.

Video of Padilla's questioning is available here.

Key excerpts:

PADILLA: Do you believe that every human life is sacred?

BLANCHE: Yes.

PADILLA: So do I. A lot of my colleagues have made remarks about our colleague who recently passed. This last week, we've also seen Lorenzo Salgado Arajo fatally shot by an ICE agent during an enforcement operation in Houston. Earlier this week, Juan Sebastian Guerrero was killed in another fatal ICE-involved shooting in Maine. I'm not here to debate immigration policy or how immigration enforcement has been conducted by this administration. My questions are specific to law enforcement policy and best practices. Given that these are officer-involved shootings, federal officer-involved shootings. What role should the Department of Justice play in ensuring independent and transparent review and investigations over these incidents?

[…]

PADILLA: Here's the bottom line: Why I'm asking these two questions, because in prior incidents, you referenced Minnesota earlier in your testimony. Alex Pretti and Renee Good were also fatally shot, and as far as we can tell, it's been months and months. There's been no justice in these cases. As far as I can tell, those officers were not fired. They have not faced any charges, so it does undermine any confidence anybody should have in the Department of Homeland Security's ability, through the Inspector General or otherwise, to investigate its own. So I come back to the question: What should the role of the Department of Justice be when there's federally officer-involved shootings?

BLANCHE: Well, I very much disagree with the statement you just made.

[…]

PADILLA: I also need to be clear that January 6ers cannot - should not - be able to seek payouts from other sources, including the Federal Tort Claims Act. Do you commit to vigorously defending taxpayer money from being paid out to January 6 rioters, those who were convicted of their involvement with January 6, regardless of the source of funding from the Department of Justice?

BLANCHE: You're talking about a statute that exists and allows anybody to seek to file a suit against the United States. So I can tell you, we always vigorously defend our cases, but I can't speak to a particular case.

[…]

PADILLA: And I know some people would suggest, "well, they've all been pardoned for their crimes on January 6, and so this may be fair game." Are you aware that at least 97 January 6ers have been accused of new crimes since January 6, 2021, including violent crimes? By the way, child molestation, etc. That sounds like the worst of the worst to me.

BLANCHE: If anybody commits a crime, they should be investigated, arrested, and prosecuted. So if you're talking about people that committed federal crimes and they happen to have been pardoned before, they should be arrested and prosecuted. Yes.

PADILLA: Well, I look, I look forward to that as well, and we'll follow up and questions for the record.

[…]

PADILLA: Let me just end with this, Mr. Blanche. It's a duty of the Attorney General of the United States to quote "operate free from partisan consideration and protect citizens' rights to equal justice." But what I've heard today fails to inspire much confidence in your ability to carry out that duty or to put federal law before loyalty to the president. I add to that, facts from the judiciary, district courts and 31 cases have recognized that the Administration has violated court rulings. The Solicitor General refuses to rule out, refusing to abide by court rulings that they circuit court rulings that they disagree with. In immigration cases alone, the Administration has admitted violating court orders. In the District of New Jersey alone more than 50 times. This does not sound like a Department of Justice. The American people deserve better, and a lot of nominees come before us and say, "Well, if I'm fortunate enough to be confirmed," then this or that. I'm not buying that. I know you're not confirmed for the top spot. You're acting in the top spot. You were the number two from nearly the beginning of the term. Yes, a lot of this accountability falls on your shoulders. The American people deserve an Attorney General who will put the Constitution above political retribution. I don't think you're fit for this job.

###