Todd Blanche’s Attorney General nomination could get hung up on a judge’s recommendation for disciplinary action before legal authorities in New York — one of a slew of ethics complaints he’s facing.
Blanche’s license to practice law is registered and on file with the New York State Unified Court System, which handles lawyer complaints through several regional Attorney Grievance Commissions.
In a scathing court ruling, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams accused Trump, Branche and Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward of attempting to manipulate the court system over Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Williams referred Blanche to the New York bar for disciplinary action and Woodward to the D.C Bar Association. Should Blanche be disbarred or disciplined, it would not prevent him from serving as Attorney General.
The U.S. Constitution and federal law establish no formal qualifications for the job. Conceivably, a non-laywer or disbarred lawyer could be appointed. But no one like that has served as Attorney General in the nation’s history.
It’s also doubtful a disgraced lawyer could pass muster during the Senate confirmation process, but Blanche conceivably could test that assumption.
Aside from Williams’ referral, Blanche is facing sweeping ethics complaints in New York.
More than 100 former federal and state judges filed a 69-page ethics complaint, accusing Blanche of violations of the New York Rules of Professional Conduct. It charges conflicts of interest, attempting to assist the President in settling a private tax audit, politicizing the Department of Justice to harass political opponents, and mishandling the Jeffrey Epstein files.
The Campaign for Accountability, a nonpartisan, nonprofit watchdog organization, asked the Attorney Grievance Committee of New York’s First Judicial Department — and the Committee on Grievances for the Southern District of New York — in May to investigate Blanche for his role in the prosecution of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
In June, the Campaign also filed a complaint with the DC bar against Woodward, the sole signer on the Trump settlement, for violating ethics rules governing conflicts of interest. As Associate Attorney General, Woodward’s tenure is governed by a separate law, and disbarrment or disciplinary action could cost him his job.
“By refusing to allow President Trump’s fictional settlement to undermine the legitimacy of the courts, Judge Williams stood up for the rule of law. Now the DC Bar must follow suit,” said Campaign Executive Director Michelle Kuppersmith in a statement.
For his part, Blanche told a Federalist Society event earlier this year the department was at “war” with state bar associations. He vowed to curb their oversight powers and hire outside counsel to fight disciplinary actions against DOJ lawyers, according to the Democracy Docket, another non-partisan group.
President Trump, Donald J. Trump Jr., Eric Trump, and The Trump Organization, LLC filed the suit on Jan 29, seeking $10 billion from the IRS and Treasury Department for allegedly failing to prevent a leak of the president’s tax information to news outlets between 2018 and 2020.
The lawsuit was settled without arguments ever being filed, granting Trump immunity from all tax audits now and in the future and establishing a $1.776 billion fund to compensate Trump allies who believe they were unjustly persecuted by the Biden administration.
The suit raised red flags because Trump was suing “entities whose decisions are subject to his direction,” according to court records.
“Acting Attorney General Blanche’s apparent capacity to speak for both Plaintiffs and Defendants, sign a ‘settlement’ document on behalf of all Parties to this action, and then repudiate part of that agreement, demonstrates that there was only one party whose interests were being represented throughout this case,” the judge wrote in her scathing opinion.
The New York City Bar Association boldly OPPOSES Todd Blanche’s nomination to be Attorney General, calling him “unfit” for the office.
This is a massive blow to MAGA…
“Mr. Blanche has taken actions that we believe make him unfit to lead an ethical and independent department of justice that is essential to our nation’s democracy,” read a letter sent by the Bar Association to Senators Chuck Grassley and Dick Durbin, the ranking members of the Judiciary Committee.
“We urge the Committee to reject the nomination of Mr. Blanche,” the letter continued. “Mr. Blanche’s record—particularly the actions he has undertaken as Deputy Attorney General and Acting Attorney General—conclusively demonstrates his lack of commitment to the integrity, professionalism and independence that the Senate should require and the American people should expect of the highest law enforcement official in the land.”
They went on to slam Blanche for failing to meet the standard of “professional excellence and unquestionable ethical standards that assure his commitment to justice and loyalty to the United States Constitution” and stated that his “primary loyalty” is to Trump and not the Constitution or the “rule of law.”
They specifically cited his role as Trump’s personal attorney during his felony trial as a cause for concern, adding that he continues to prioritize his boss’s “personal interests” above all else.
“As a result, his actions have been detrimental to the Department of Justice and the rule of law. Specifically, Mr. Blanche has compromised the integrity and independence of the Department he has been nominated to lead,” the letter asserted.
The Bar Association then listed some specific concerns, stating that Blanche has:
I. Abused the Department’s prosecutorial power through politically motivated prosecutions and investigations;
II. Failed to respect the Constitutional rights of citizens and all other people present in the United States protesting widespread abuses by ICE and other customs officers;
III. Placed loyalty to President Trump over commitment to the rule of law in the Epstein investigation and the “settlement” of Trump v. I.R.S.;
IV. Undermined the independence and integrity of the Department of Justice by, among other things, terminating or reassigning lawyers and others who participated in January 6 investigations or otherwise acted in a manner perceived to be disloyal to Mr. Trump; and;
V. Undermined public trust in the Department of Justice and the rule of law through conduct contrary to the Rules of Professional Conduct applicable to Mr. Blanche and the Department’s own Justice Manual.
“Under normal circumstances, each of these improper actions by Mr. Blanche as Deputy Attorney General and Acting Attorney General would be grounds for disqualifying him from serving as Attorney General,” the letter added. “Together, they demonstrate that, whatever his prior experience or formal credentials, Mr. Blanche is unfit to lead the U.S. Department of Justice.”
We couldn’t agree more. Todd Blanche is an immoral hatchet man for an even more immoral President. He will do whatever Trump orders him to do, regardless of how criminal it is or how much damage it inflicts on our democracy.
The simple truth is that anyone who would willingly serve a demented, murderous pedophile like Donald Trump is unfit to hold office. Todd Blanche is no different. The Senate must reject his nomination.
############
How did Trump create the worst diarrhea outbreak this century?
Dissolved the USDA Committee on Microbiological Criteria.
Fired 913 Food Safety Inspection staff.
Axed the National Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection.
All told, he axed over 20,000 USDA workers.