Acting Attorney General Faces GOP Senate Revolt Over Trump's $1.8 Billion Fund
Todd Blanche's Capitol Hill meeting with Republicans over controversial compensation fund erupted into two-hour confrontation that derailed party priorities.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche faced a fierce two-hour confrontation with Senate Republicans on Thursday during what was supposed to be a routine briefing about President Trump's controversial fund to compensate people claiming government mistreatment. The heated meeting in an ornate room just off the Senate floor left GOP senators so angry that party leaders scrapped planned votes on their top legislative priority.
Blanche had arrived at the Capitol expecting to address concerns about the Justice Department fund, which Trump wants to use to pay individuals who claim they were unfairly targeted by the government. Instead, he encountered dozens of Republican senators who unleashed their frustrations about the plan's legal basis, potential recipients, and operational procedures. The fund could potentially benefit some January 6 rioters who violently assaulted the Capitol building.
Senators questioned fundamental aspects of the compensation scheme, including whom it would pay and how the process would work. They made clear their opposition to the plan, which emerged from a deal between Trump's lawyers and his administration to use money that Congress does not directly control. The arrangement bypasses normal legislative oversight of federal spending.
The confrontation proved so damaging that Republican leadership immediately canceled planned votes on a $72 billion immigration crackdown measure they had hoped to pass before Memorial Day. The decision to punt action highlighted fears that senators would be forced to cast difficult votes related to the compensation fund while emotions were still running high.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota had earlier suggested Republicans were considering adding language to the immigration bill to place limits on Trump's fund. However, the explosive meeting with Blanche appears to have complicated those plans, leaving the party's legislative agenda in disarray as members grapple with their opposition to one of the president's key initiatives.
