Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche announces a second indictment of former FBI Director James Comey during a press conference at the Justice Department in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 28, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard
President Donald Trump's nominee for the attorney general post isn't merely a "yes-man," he's one who is willing to compromise his own profession and reputation to be a "yes-man."
At least, that's what former Department of Homeland Security chief of staff Miles Taylor wrote in his column Tuesday. Taylor spent the first Trump administration trying to sound the alarm from inside the White House, writing a column and then a book under the "Anonymous" title.
Todd Blanche, who is likely to be confirmed on Thursday for the post, "has already endured humiliation after humiliation in order to protect his boss. Blanche is now poised to become arguably the most powerful lawyer on earth as Trump’s nominee to run the US Department of Justice outright," wrote Taylor.
Were Blanche to lose the confirmation, it would be another in a long line of Trump failures. If he wins, Taylor thinks the job will destroy Blanche.
"And the world will see how far Trump will go if he is unrestrained," he wrote. Chief among them is Blanche's directing new attention toward the Jeffrey Epstein files.
As the senior Justice Department official overseeing the Epstein files, Blanche has been criticized for a botched rollout that exposed survivors’ names and images while keeping many powerful figures redacted. A federal judge this week was unconvinced by the department’s explanations, and has now ordered Blanche to turn over unreleased documents directly to the court.
Blanche’s own actions have fueled further controversy after he personally flew to interview convicted trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell, the Epstein co-conspirator. She was transferred to a prison "camp" shortly after their meeting. It is a significantly less restrictive confinement
The confirmation process also highlighted Blanche's evasive testimony. In more than 400 pages of written answers to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Blanche declined to answer over 160 questions as “inappropriate." One included whether he would revive a controversial “anti-weaponization” fund if ordered by the president. Two Republican holdouts are pressing him to commit in writing to no sweetheart deals for Trump, a promise he has so far refused.
More than 1,200 former DOJ officials, from both parties, have urged the Senate to reject him, citing a “culture of fear” and questioning his fidelity to the Constitution. Supporters mustered fewer than 80 names in response.
Blanche, Taylor argues, has become Trump’s personal criminal defense lawyer and was standing beside him when he became the first U.S. president convicted of a felony. Now, as he nears the nation’s top law enforcement post, critics warn he may serve as a legal shield for an administration already facing an unprecedented judicial paper trail. The question for Blanche is not just whether he will be confirmed, but who will stand beside him when the consequences of his choices come due.
Taylor couldn't help but remember those who came before Blanche like former lawyer Michael Cohen, who went to prison for Trump and Rudy Giuliani who was disbarred and bankrupted after working for the president.
"Todd Blanche stood beside Donald Trump as a defense lawyer. He’s hoping to be rewarded for that loyalty," Taylor said of Trump.
"The question that should keep him up at night is simpler than any a senator has asked: When the reckoning comes — for everything he’ll be asked to do on Trump’s behalf — who will stand beside Todd Blanche?" Taylor closed asking.