Todd Blanche

The Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as Deputy Attorney General in a strictly party-line 52-46 vote. Blanche had served as Trump's lead defense counsel in three concurrent criminal cases, including the Manhattan hush money case where Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts. He founded Blanche Law speci...

The Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as Deputy Attorney General in a strictly party-line 52-46 vote. Blanche had served as Trump's lead defense counsel in three concurrent criminal cases, including the Manhattan hush money case where Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts. He founded Blanche Law specifically to represent Trump after leaving Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft. His earlier career included roughly eight years as an AUSA in the Southern District of New York. Legal ethicists immediately flagged the conflict of interest: Trump's personal lawyer would now oversee DOJ files implicating Trump.

Blanche and AG Bondi briefed Trump at the White House that his name appeared multiple times in the Epstein files, alongside many other high-profile figures. Officials described it as a 'routine briefing' and said the files contained 'unverified hearsay.' This was not publicly revealed until July 23,...

Blanche and AG Bondi briefed Trump at the White House that his name appeared multiple times in the Epstein files, alongside many other high-profile figures. Officials described it as a 'routine briefing' and said the files contained 'unverified hearsay.' This was not publicly revealed until July 23, when the Wall Street Journal broke the story. CNN's timeline analysis demonstrated that after this briefing, the administration pivoted from hyping releases to actively suppressing them. When ABC News asked Trump directly on July 15 whether Bondi told him his name was in the files, he contradicted the reporting: 'No, no. She's given us just a very quick briefing.'

The DOJ released a two-page unsigned, undated memo concluding no 'client list' existed, no blackmail evidence was found, and 'no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted.' The memo directly contradicted Bondi's February 21 claim. It triggered internal chaos — by July 11, reports emerged ...

The DOJ released a two-page unsigned, undated memo concluding no 'client list' existed, no blackmail evidence was found, and 'no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted.' The memo directly contradicted Bondi's February 21 claim. It triggered internal chaos — by July 11, reports emerged that FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino had a heated confrontation with Bondi over how the memo was handled. The conservative base erupted: Elon Musk posted a clown meme writing 'This is the final straw.' A Quinnipiac poll found only 17% of Americans approved of the handling.

Blanche posted on X at 6:45 AM: 'Justice demands courage. For the first time, the Department of Justice is reaching out to Ghislaine Maxwell to ask: what do you know?' The post received 3.5 million views. Congressional Democrats disputed the 'first time' claim, noting DOJ had previously prosecuted M...

Blanche posted on X at 6:45 AM: 'Justice demands courage. For the first time, the Department of Justice is reaching out to Ghislaine Maxwell to ask: what do you know?' The post received 3.5 million views. Congressional Democrats disputed the 'first time' claim, noting DOJ had previously prosecuted Maxwell. Former prosecutors called it 'highly unusual — and potentially unprecedented' for the DOJ's No. 2 to personally conduct a witness interview. A former senior DOJ official told NBC: 'I've never heard of a deputy attorney general doing anything like this before.'

Blanche interviewed Maxwell over two days (July 24-25) for approximately nine hours at a federal courthouse in Tallahassee. He told Maxwell she had 'immunity' — her words could not be used against her. Maxwell's attorney David Oscar Markus was described as 'a friend of Blanche's.' Maxwell stated Tru...

Blanche interviewed Maxwell over two days (July 24-25) for approximately nine hours at a federal courthouse in Tallahassee. He told Maxwell she had 'immunity' — her words could not be used against her. Maxwell's attorney David Oscar Markus was described as 'a friend of Blanche's.' Maxwell stated Trump 'never behaved improperly' and was 'a gentleman in all respects.' NPR reported Blanche did not give Maxwell a standard warning about lying, did not confront her with the Epstein-Maxwell email about Trump, and allowed Markus access to grand jury testimony — a move critics said could help Maxwell pursue an appeal. Victim lawyer Jack Scarola asked to attend but was excluded.

Approximately one week after Blanche's interview, Maxwell was transferred overnight from FCI Tallahassee (low-security) to Federal Prison Camp Bryan, Texas (minimum-security). BOP policy generally requires convicted sex offenders at minimum low-security facilities. Victims were not notified — an app...

Approximately one week after Blanche's interview, Maxwell was transferred overnight from FCI Tallahassee (low-security) to Federal Prison Camp Bryan, Texas (minimum-security). BOP policy generally requires convicted sex offenders at minimum low-security facilities. Victims were not notified — an apparent Crime Victims' Rights Act violation. Epstein victim Annie Farmer told CNN: 'It again feels like she is getting preferential treatment.' Blanche later defended the move on Meet the Press, citing 'numerous threats against her life.' A DOJ official, Joseph Schnitt, was caught on hidden camera claiming Maxwell was transferred 'to keep her mouth shut.'

Blanche joined Bondi, Patel, and Rep. Lauren Boebert in the White House Situation Room to pressure her to remove her name from the bipartisan discharge petition for the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The petition had 217 signatures — one short of the 218 needed. Boebert refused to withdraw. That af...

Blanche joined Bondi, Patel, and Rep. Lauren Boebert in the White House Situation Room to pressure her to remove her name from the bipartisan discharge petition for the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The petition had 217 signatures — one short of the 218 needed. Boebert refused to withdraw. That afternoon, newly sworn-in Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ) provided the decisive 218th signature. The House voted 427-1 to pass the bill on November 18; Trump signed it November 19 without reporters present.

On the statutory deadline, Blanche appeared on Fox & Friends and admitted only a partial release would occur: 'Today, I expect that we're going to release several hundred thousand documents today. And then over the next couple weeks, I expect several hundred thousand more.' Only ~3,965 files were pu...

On the statutory deadline, Blanche appeared on Fox & Friends and admitted only a partial release would occur: 'Today, I expect that we're going to release several hundred thousand documents today. And then over the next couple weeks, I expect several hundred thousand more.' Only ~3,965 files were published — a fraction of the 6+ million responsive pages. Over 500 pages were entirely blacked out. Within 24 hours, at least 16 files disappeared from the DOJ website, including a photo of Trump with Epstein, Melania, and Maxwell. Bipartisan criticism was swift: Rep. Massie cited the law's text mandating 'not later than 30 days' and the word 'all.'

In a Meet the Press interview with Kristen Welker, Blanche was asked about lawmakers threatening contempt or criminal referrals for obstruction. His response: 'Not even a little bit. Bring it on.' He argued lawmakers who criticized Bondi and Patel 'have no idea what they're talking about.' On the Ma...

In a Meet the Press interview with Kristen Welker, Blanche was asked about lawmakers threatening contempt or criminal referrals for obstruction. His response: 'Not even a little bit. Bring it on.' He argued lawmakers who criticized Bondi and Patel 'have no idea what they're talking about.' On the Maxwell prison transfer, he claimed 'she was suffering numerous and numerous threats against her life.' On the disappeared Trump photo: 'It has nothing to do with President Trump. There are dozens of photos of President Trump already released to the public seeing him with Mr. Epstein.'

At a DOJ press conference, Blanche announced the release of over 3 million pages, 2,000+ videos, and 180,000 images. He declared: 'We did not protect President Trump… or anybody.' He referenced reviewing 'two Eiffel Towers of pages' in 30 days and said 'mistakes are inevitable.' AG Bondi was conspic...

At a DOJ press conference, Blanche announced the release of over 3 million pages, 2,000+ videos, and 180,000 images. He declared: 'We did not protect President Trump… or anybody.' He referenced reviewing 'two Eiffel Towers of pages' in 30 days and said 'mistakes are inevitable.' AG Bondi was conspicuously absent — CNN noted it was unclear why the department's leader wasn't making the announcement. Moments after, Bondi posted a video about the arrest of former CNN anchor Don Lemon. The DOJ had identified ~6 million responsive pages but released only ~3.5 million.

Across three Sunday shows, Blanche signaled no additional prosecutions and declared the review complete. On ABC's This Week: 'This review is, is over. We reviewed over 6 million pieces of paper, thousands of videos, tens of thousands of images.' On CNN, he said: 'The attorney general wants that more...

Across three Sunday shows, Blanche signaled no additional prosecutions and declared the review complete. On ABC's This Week: 'This review is, is over. We reviewed over 6 million pieces of paper, thousands of videos, tens of thousands of images.' On CNN, he said: 'The attorney general wants that more than anything, but that doesn't mean we can just create evidence.' When George Stephanopoulos asked about the conflict of interest — both Blanche and Bondi having served as Trump's personal lawyers — Blanche replied: 'That's a fair question, George,' but did not elaborate. Weeks later, NPR and CNN would expose dozens of missing FBI records.

On Fox News' Ingraham Angle, Blanche made his most controversial statement: 'It is not a crime to party with Mr. Epstein. It isn't a crime to email with Mr. Epstein. Some of these men may have done horrible things, and if we have evidence that allows us to prosecute them, you better believe we will....

On Fox News' Ingraham Angle, Blanche made his most controversial statement: 'It is not a crime to party with Mr. Epstein. It isn't a crime to email with Mr. Epstein. Some of these men may have done horrible things, and if we have evidence that allows us to prosecute them, you better believe we will. But it's also the kind of thing that the American people need to understand that it isn't a crime to party with Mr. Epstein. It isn't a crime to have lunch on his island.' When Ingraham noted 'if the photos could speak, some of them look pretty bad,' Blanche replied: 'That's right, and unfortunately, photos can't speak.' Rep. Ted Lieu called for Blanche to be fired, saying he 'got the law wrong' regarding federal sex trafficking statutes.

After NPR (Feb 24) and CNN exposed that over 90 of ~325 FBI witness interview records were missing from the DOJ website — including three interviews with a woman alleging Trump sexually assaulted her as a minor — the DOJ released 16 previously withheld pages. Their explanation: documents were 'incor...

After NPR (Feb 24) and CNN exposed that over 90 of ~325 FBI witness interview records were missing from the DOJ website — including three interviews with a woman alleging Trump sexually assaulted her as a minor — the DOJ released 16 previously withheld pages. Their explanation: documents were 'incorrectly coded as duplicative.' Of NPR's original 53 missing pages, only 16 were published, leaving 37 pages still unaccounted for. This directly contradicted Blanche's February 2 declaration that 'this review is over.' The same day, the House Oversight Committee voted 24-19 to subpoena AG Bondi. A senior DOJ official told CNN the DOJ was not currently investigating anyone connected to Epstein.