Tillis says he won’t vote for Blanche until he meets Epstein accuser
Republican Sen. Thom Tillis said he expected Todd Blanche to meet with Epstein before the confirmation vote.
President Donald Trump’s pick for the nation’s top law enforcement position may not be confirmed for the job until he meets with women who say they were abused by Jeffrey Epstein.
Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said he would not vote to support Todd Branch as attorney general until he met with Epstein’s accusers, who he said had spent months trying to meet with the acting attorney general to no avail.
Epstein accuser Todd Blanche says he won’t meet with alleged victims
Alleged Epstein victim Dani Bensky said Todd Blanche and the Justice Department exposed her personal information in the release of Epstein’s files.
Tillis made the comments on the second day of a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on whether to move forward with Blanche’s nomination for attorney general. One of the witnesses was Dani Bensky. She told the panel that Epstein abused her, that the Justice Department improperly disclosed personal information about her in the release of the Epstein files, and that Branch ignored the concerns of Epstein accusers.
Republicans maintain majority in committee vote
Republicans hold an 11-10 edge over Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, and one Republican senator could block Blanche’s nomination. The gap narrowed after the death of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), a member of the committee, on July 11.
“We’re trying to get to Jesus, and this is a very important part of getting to Jesus,” Tillis said at the hearing, referring to Blanche’s confirmation.
The other Republican on the committee, Sen. John Cornyn, has not committed to supporting Blanche.
Asked on July 16 whether he agreed with Tillis that he needed to meet with Epstein’s accusers, Cornyn told reporters, “I think it’s a good thing.”
Tillis is scheduled to retire after his term ends in January, and Cornyn lost his seat after Trump endorsed another Republican in the primary. Unless both Cornyn and Tillis say yes, Blanche’s confirmation process will be halted.
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., credited Benski and a handful of other Epstein accusers who attended Branch’s hearings with insisting that Tillis meet with Branch.
“There’s going to be dramatic work going on to get to that point, because you had the courage to stand up. Not just you, but your friends,” Durbin said. “I believe we have achieved that.”
Cornyn is skeptical of Blanche
When senators asked Blanche directly on July 15, Cornyn seemed the most willing of the committee’s Republicans to criticize Blanche’s record.
Cornyn asked Branch about the Justice Department’s decision to settle a $10 billion lawsuit filed by Trump against the Internal Revenue Service.
The deal was designed to waive Trump’s past tax obligations in exchange for him dropping the lawsuit and creating a “de-weaponization” fund that could potentially benefit Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol Police on Jan. 6, 2021.
A federal judge ruled on July 13 that the settlement was unfair because President Trump controlled the people who defended the government against his lawsuit. She barred President Trump from mentioning the settlement in any legal proceedings.
Cornyn noted that the Justice Department settled the lawsuit despite arguments that Trump missed the deadline to file the lawsuit, which would prevent the case from being fought in court.
“There’s a lot of unusual things about this,” Cornyn said.
