Trump Threatens to Pull Blanche Nomination While Julie Kelly Goes Nuclear: “These Blockheads Must Pay a Price” for Blocking the AG Confirmation Over the Anti-Weaponization Fund

President Donald Trump has signaled he is prepared to temporarily withdraw the nomination of acting Attorney General Todd Blanche rather than yield to demands from two Republican senators, even as conservative commentator Julie Kelly launched a blistering public attack on the lawmakers she blames for the delay.

In posts circulating widely on Thursday, Kelly declared that Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina “must pay a price” for blocking Blanche’s confirmation. “These blockheads must pay a price for blocking Todd Blanche’s confirmation,” she wrote.

“I have no idea how Cornyn and Tillis ever got elected. The US Senate—and the country—will be so much better without them. But the administration needs a plan to punish the lobbying firm, corporation, or law firm that hires either one of them.” She followed up by labeling the pair “Dumb and dumber,” pairing the posts with video of the senators speaking to reporters amid the standoff.

The Senate Judiciary Committee postponed a scheduled vote on advancing Blanche’s nomination after Cornyn and Tillis refused to provide the necessary support. The two senators have insisted on written assurances that a controversial element of a Justice Department settlement with the IRS is permanently dead.

That May 2026 settlement resolved Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS. It included provisions granting the president, his family, and associated businesses certain protections from tax audits, along with the creation of a roughly $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund intended to compensate individuals who claimed they had been improperly targeted by the government. Critics across the aisle warned the fund could channel money to defendants connected to the January 6, 2021, Capitol events and other politically charged cases. The Justice Department has since stated that the fund is no longer moving forward, but Cornyn and Tillis have demanded formal, written confirmation that it cannot be revived, along with greater clarity on the remaining audit-related protections.

Blanche, who previously served as Trump’s personal attorney in the New York hush-money case and has been serving as acting attorney general, has told senators the fund is dead. That has not been enough for the two holdouts. Both are considered lame-duck senators whose terms are ending, giving them leverage in the current Congress while limiting their long-term political exposure.Trump responded by floating the idea of simply waiting them out. He indicated he would have “no objection” to temporarily withdrawing Blanche’s name and renominating him once Cornyn and Tillis have left the Senate. The approach would allow the White House to avoid further concessions on the IRS settlement while still installing its preferred choice at the Justice Department early in the next Congress.

The delay has frustrated Trump allies who view Blanche as essential to overhauling what they describe as a politicized Justice Department. Kelly’s intervention reflects a broader current of anger among the president’s strongest supporters toward Republicans they regard as insufficiently loyal. Cornyn and Tillis have previously drawn criticism from the same circles for positions on other nominations and legislation.Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley has said the panel is focused on securing the votes needed to move forward in the coming days. Negotiations between the senators and the Justice Department continued Thursday, with reports of last-minute meetings and proposed language aimed at resolving the dispute.

Whether those talks produce a breakthrough or the White House opts for the temporary withdrawal remains unclear.The episode underscores the internal Republican tensions that continue to surface even with a Republican president and Senate majority. For now, Blanche remains acting attorney general while his formal confirmation hangs in limbo, caught between demands for tighter restrictions on the IRS settlement and the administration’s determination to install its chosen leadership without further dilution of the original deal.