July 16, 2026 — Day 2 of Blanche Confirmation Hearing
Good morning, Chairman Grassley, Ranking Member Durbin, and Members of this Committee. I am here today as a public servant, a former Justice Department employee, and a concerned American who cares deeply about the future of our country.
I had great hope that Todd Blanche would be an effective leader and a responsible steward of the Department of Justice. But he quickly proved me wrong.
Two days after Mr. Blanche was confirmed, he fired me from my position as the Department’s career Pardon Attorney. I declined to rubberstamp a political favor for a friend of the President, and it cost me my job.
Mr. Blanche’s office had asked me to recommend restoring the gun ownership rights of a convicted domestic abuser. I raised concerns about public safety. But Mr. Blanche’s staff pressured me to go along anyway.
I did not. Domestic violence is the leading type of homicide among women. When a domestic abuser is armed, his victim is five times more likely to be killed.
But because this particular domestic abuser had a personal relationship with the President, Mr. Blanche’s staff asked me to set aside my concerns. When I wouldn’t, Mr. Blanche fired me within hours.
He then took extraordinary measures to silence me. He sent U.S. Marshals to my home in an effort to prevent me from speaking with Members of Congress.
I was shocked to hear Mr. Blanche’s testimony about this yesterday. What he said about my firing is provably false.
His claim that it had nothing to do with the concerns I raised is contradicted by documents and evidence. His claim that he tried to call me before sending Marshals to my home is flat-out false. His claim that it is normal for DOJ to use armed law enforcement to deliver mail to the homes of its former employees is preposterous.
The casual lies that Mr. Blanche tells—even while sitting in this chair, testifying to this Committee—are emblematic of a much larger problem.
Courts across the country have said they can no longer trust the Justice Department to tell the truth and uphold the law.
There are over 700 documented instances of DOJ violating judicial orders. There are nearly 100 cases in which judges appointed by both parties have found that DOJ presented false or misleading information in court.
Earlier this week, a federal judge found that Mr. Blanche personally misled this Congress about the Department’s settlement agreement with President Trump.
To the American public, it looks like Mr. Blanche is running DOJ as Donald Trump’s personal law firm. He is using law enforcement powers to pursue petty grudges harbored by the President. These pointless vendettas are wasting our resources and destroying DOJ’s credibility.
Mr. Blanche has repeatedly placed Mr. Trump’s personal interests ahead of the interests of the country.
The collusive settlement is a perfect example. It protects the entire Trump family, and all of their companies, from any investigation or audit—forever.
It gives away nearly $2 billion of our money—for no reason at all. It is a windfall for the President and his allies at the expense of the American people.
A court found that signing this agreement was a betrayal of Mr. Blanche’s duty to zealously represent the interests of the United States. That is the most basic obligation of the Attorney General.
Mr. Blanche said yesterday that the settlement fund is dead. It is not. That is Contract Law 101. Mr. Trump or his sons could seek to enforce it at any time.
Mr. Blanche gave bizarre excuses for not meeting with Jeffrey Epstein’s victims. Yet he spent two days personally eliciting testimony from Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s partner in crime.
After this imprisoned sex-trafficker made statements claiming to exonerate the President, she was moved to a minimum-security camp. That is a grievous breach of DOJ policy. It is an abuse of Mr. Blanche’s office. It is a terrible betrayal of Epstein and Maxwell’s victims.
Mr. Blanche’s callous approach to the Epstein case matches his cavalier attitude toward rearming domestic abusers.
At the end of the day, the priority of this DOJ is protecting powerful men—even if it comes at the expense of vulnerable women.
What Mr. Blanche is doing is dangerous. Earlier this week, two Supreme Court justices sat here and testified about terrifying threats that judges are facing in this country. Meanwhile, Mr. Blanche is fueling those threats by attacking judges who rule against the Administration and declaring a “war” against the courts.
These are not partisan concerns. Americans across the political spectrum rely on DOJ to keep us safe and free. Mr. Blanche has shown that he is willing to put all of that at risk to serve a political agenda.
I beg the Members of this Committee to think about what this is costing our country. Please do not degrade our justice system further by promoting Mr. Blanche. Thank you.
