Can Blanche Become AG & Deadly ICE Traffic Stops

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1:34That means working with companies to identify where they're exposed, decide what matters most, and put practical standards in place so risk is managed as part of day-to-day operations. And when losses do happen, the Hartford can pair that risk control work with insurance coverage grounded in underwriting, risk engineering, and claims experience developed over time. Learn more at thehartford.com slash risk mitigation. This is Bloomberg Law with June Grosso from Bloomberg Radio. And what I don't understand, Todd Blanche, what happened to the Todd Blanche who was a prosecutor in the Southern District of New York?

2:14What happened to the prosecutor people had respect for? What happened to the prosecutor who once respected the rule of law? What happened to the prosecutor who said that there wouldn't be a whiff of political partisanship and then prosecutes the president's enemies over seashells, cases, over making a video stating the plain law and constitution? What happened to the Todd Blanche of the Southern District of New York that could convert him into you? You asked me what happened to Todd Blanche. I am still here. I am the same exact person I was when I was a federal prosecutor in the SDNY, which is do the right thing and do everything you can to keep communities safe.

2:53So when I was a line prosecutor, when I was a supervisor, when I was the head of a division, my motivation and my goal was the same thing.

3:01Amy Powell:Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche faced some tough questions at his confirmation hearings from Democratic senators like Adam Schiff over his brief but tumultuous tenure over the Justice Department. The questions focused on whether Blanche could be independent of President Trump, his former client, the$1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund he created, the bungle release of the Epstein files, and the prosecution of the president's political enemies. With Democrats on the Judiciary Committee united against Blanche, he can't afford to lose even one Republican vote. Republican Senator John Cornyn says he hasn't decided how to vote yet.

3:46Amy Powell:And Republican Senator Tom Tillis gave Blanche an ultimatum today. Meet with the Epstein survivors or you won't get my vote. I expect that meeting to occur before I'm willing to vote out of this committee. And I'm trying to get to yes, but this is a very important part of getting to yes. There should not be any reason why, based on what Mr. Blanche said yesterday, If he said that he would do it today, then he can certainly do it over the next two weeks. Joining me is Amy Powell, litigation director at Lawyers for Good Government. She's a former senior trial counsel at the Justice Department. I'll start with the broad question, Amy.

4:26Amy Powell:What did Blanche demonstrate to you in this five-hour contentious hearing? Well, not much changed in my view, right? He is trying to present himself as a serious career professional, but his actions belie that. He assured the senators under oath this time that the weaponization fund is dead, but he would not explain the mechanism for that. He didn't say he has rescinded it by order. He did not say the settlement agreement is dead and unenforceable because I never had authority to enter it. In fact, when he was specifically asked that question by Senator Cornyn what the status of the settlement agreement was, he failed to disclaim it entirely.

5:11Which means, as far as I'm concerned, that the weaponization fund is not necessarily dead. The plaintiffs in that case, Donald Trump and his family and associates, could sue to enforce the settlement agreement. Now, I don't think the settlement agreement is enforceable or a valid settlement agreement or that he had authority to enter it. Neither he nor Stanley Woodward did. But that doesn't mean someone won't try to enforce it. And that doesn't mean this Justice Department wouldn't attempt to settle it in the future. To my mind, that means the Weaponization Fund is not dead and they haven't put forward any proof to the contrary.

5:47Amy Powell:I think more questions were asked about the Weaponization Fund than anything else when there are so many other things to ask him about. Why has that become such a focus for the senators? It's a good question, to which I don't necessarily have the answer. My sense as armchair psychologist is that that level of corruption strikes a nerve with Republican senators and others among their constituents who might be sympathetic to Trump, that Todd Blanche and the administration are using the Justice Department to pay out unearned money to the Trump family and to friends and associates. The level of corruption is something that is hard to square with their public responsibilities.

6:33Certainly senators like Tillis and Cornyn have been extremely critical of the weaponization fund from the outset. While I understand Tillis has said he is at least partially satisfied, he hadn't formally made up his mind. Senator Cornyn seems not to be, and I'm glad to hear that.

6:50Amy Powell:While a lot of time was spent on the weaponization fund, not that much time was spent on the tax agreement. that we've talked about before, which he defended. And he said, you know, it's going forward. But he said it's part of any settlement. It doesn't appear to be part of the settlement, right? It's not mentioned in the settlement agreement. What is the status of this document? So certainly, Blanche seemed to confirm that he views it as part of the settlement, and therefore that he views the settlement as an enforceable contract and that this piece of it is still alive. I think that should outrage anyone who's paying attention, that they've offered this sort of blanket immunity to Trump and associates, just potentially a very broad category, not just his family members in ways that are certainly not consistent with DOJ policy or longstanding practice, but also just not consistent with ordinary conceptions of justice, what the Justice Department ought to be up to protecting the rule of law and the American taxpayer and the public fisc, things they ought to be up to.

7:51They're not like granting blanket immunity to the president and his family member, especially for things that weren't part of the underlying lawsuit. Even if one had some outrage towards the government for some contractor's leak of Trump's tax returns, right, that would not justify in any sense like blanket immunity for the president and his family members for anything that they may have done wrong in the past. And I hesitate to call it agreement because it's not actually mentioned in the agreement. This waiver language appears to attempt to confer immunity for things wholly unrelated to the dispute over the leak of his tax returns or the alleged leak of his tax returns.

8:33It grants immunity for anything he or a family member may be investigated for, whether that is, you know, improper tax returns anytime in the past several years, or it is a parking ticket from the National Park Service or some dispute with the Postal Service about what postages do. The sort of blanket immunity for him and his family members is wild and wildly disconnected to the underlying dispute.

9:00Amy Powell:His hearing on Tuesday came after on Monday a Florida judge issued a scathing opinion on the weaponization fund and his role in it, saying he abdicated his responsibility to zealously defend the interests of the United States. There was a conflict of interest because he had been Trump's personal attorney, and she sent her decision to the Bar Association in New York, which Blanche kind of fluffed off. He said it's not really a referral. So he's probably correct that it is not technically a referral. It's not technically sanctions against him. And that is because, I think, as the court noted, neither he nor any other government attorney ever actually entered an appearance in the case.

9:45The only filings on the docket are from the plaintiff's attorneys, who are also Trump's attorneys, right? But Todd Blanche used to be his attorney, and Stan Woodward is not his attorney, but is effectively acting as one in this case by all appearances. So because there are active investigations of their contact in their respective bar associations, she sent along her orders an FYI to those investigators, even though they were not technically subject to her jurisdiction because they were not in court in front of her and never made an appearance. I think that's a fairly strong indicator of what this particular judge thinks on the matter and sort of stays within the lines, I think, of what she thinks she is permitted to do.

10:26It will be interesting to see what the Justice Department does with this order otherwise. It doesn't do a whole lot, right? Like it refers to the bar, one of the plaintiff's attorneys. One's referred to the bar. One is prevented from being admitted pro hoc vice in the future because he's not currently admitted in Florida. He was just appearing by permission. It proposes some monetary sanctions, but doesn't actually impose them. And it's unclear whether there will be any. And it has this language about preventing referring to the agreement as a settlement agreement. While I certainly agree with that, it's unclear to me if that binds the Justice Department.

11:03If it does, they'd almost certainly appeal that. that would be some questions about whether she had the authority to do that. The plaintiff's attorneys might appeal it regardless, because they're certainly subject to her order since they appeared in the case and might claim some ethical obligation or at least some free speech rights to refer to the agreement, agreement in quotes, in whatever way they please. That part might be tough to hold up. I guess we'll find out. There is also ongoing litigation in the Eastern District of Virginia, and I guess potentially elsewhere, about the weaponization fund and whether or not it is really over.

11:36Amy Powell:Well, that's where he refused to submit a sworn statement that the weaponization phone was dead. So the Epstein files were another big topic, and the Justice Department's bungled release of the Epstein files that exposed some victims' identities, criticized by lawmakers on both sides. He defended the release, but took responsibility that there There were errors and he apologized. I mean, do you think he handled that part well? I mean, appreciate at some level that he felt the need to take some responsibility, right? That that was bungled, especially the release of the victim's identities, which is just gross and inexcusable.

12:17It's the only thing they were explicitly allowed to redact in the statute, right? I think it was victims' names and any classified information, what they're explicitly allowed to redact. I didn't really hear him take responsibility for how slow the process has been, right? Like the idea of the excuse such as it is for having accidentally released these victims identities was how quickly they had to move. And yet they haven't moved all that quickly. There are still unreleased files and much of what they have released appears to be over redacted to people. that's in litigation and in several places, whether or not they can redact things where redaction is permitted under other statutes, or I think the Justice Department would say it's required under other statutes.

12:59And I don't presume to know the answer to those questions. But the fact is, there are a lot of documents, and they have not committed the resources necessary to get those documents out. And it sure looks like just an attempt to protect the president's interest, He was not some interest of the presidency or the office.

13:17Amy Powell:Coming up next, I'll continue this conversation with Amy Powell of Lawyers for Good Government. Has the Justice Department really lost the confidence of federal judges? I'm June Grosso, and you're listening to Bloomberg. This message is brought to you by Apple Card. Apple Card puts the power of titanium in the palm of your hand. What does that mean? It means the power to earn unlimited daily cash back on your purchases every day. It means a materially different credit card accepted anywhere in the world MasterCard is accepted. Ditch the plastic. Upgrade to titanium. Apply in the Wallet app on iPhone today.

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15:27Amy Powell:Whether or not Todd Blanche will be confirmed as the next attorney general, remains uncertain after two days of confirmation hearings. I've been talking to Amy Powell, litigation director at Lawyers for Good Government. Amy Blanche needs every Republican senator to vote for him to get his confirmation out of the Judiciary Committee. And Republican Senator Tom Tillis gave him an ultimatum, meet with the Epstein survivors or you don't get my vote. Is it unusual for an attorney general or an acting attorney general in this case to meet with victims? It's a good question. I don't know if it's unusual, to be honest.

16:07I assume it is unusual for attorney generals to be involved in the nitty gritty of cases like this and meeting with witnesses and victims. But he's already done so, right? Like he met with Ghislaine Maxwell, which was also extremely unusual. To meet with her and not her victims is something that certainly publicly looks very bad. I gotta say, Tillis's demand that he meet with the victims seems like an extremely low bar for becoming attorney general. And if he can't manage that, like, I hope Senator Tillis is unimpressed, but we shall see.

16:41Amy Powell:Blanche was also questioned about the fact that after he met with Ghislaine Maxwell at a Florida prison, about a week later, she was transferred to a prison camp. Blanche claimed it was because she was getting threats, but here's what Senator Booker said about that. When people are under threats in a Bureau of Prison facility, they're put into solitary confinement or protected. They're not moved to a camp. That's not always true. What is true is someone that is accused of child sex trafficking under the Bureau of Prisons' own policies is not put in a facility like this that seems clearly like a reward.

17:25It sure smacks of a special deal because she didn't incriminate the president, but I don't have any more knowledge about that than anyone else. It's unusual. It seems like he cut her a sweetheart deal in exchange for not incriminating the president. That's what it looks like to everyone. Just the appearance of impropriety, especially given his former role as Trump's personal lawyer, just keeps escalating.

17:47Amy Powell:And that was a part that the Democrats were pressing him on, whether he was able to be independent from the White House, whether he was still Trump's personal lawyer. He said, President Trump, trust me to give him counsel. Counsel doesn't mean I'm a yes man. But then when he was pressed about it by Senator Coons, he said that the Justice Department is part of the executive branch. If confirmed, he'll be a member of the cabinet who serves at the pleasure of the president. The Justice Department traditionally has been different from other departments. It has. There's a tradition of independence to ensure that while they are subject to political control, they are also exercising independent judgment, that they aren't subject to the political whims of the White House.

18:33They aren't trying to advance anyone's partisan political interests. And while I realize people will point to this instance or that where they think the Justice Department didn't do that perfectly, it has, at least until now, always been the ideal of the Justice Department. And I think that's important that that be an ideal that people are at least aspiring to subscribe to. It is not under this administration, right? And I'm not speaking about the rank and file career attorneys, many of whom are trying to continue to do their best work and provide their best counsel. I'm saying that the political officials at the Justice Department, including Todd Blanche, have repeatedly explained that they don't think the Justice Department should be independent.

19:16The reason he is not claiming to be defending himself as independent from the president is that he's not, and he has argued that he shouldn't be. He thinks the Justice Department should be subject to the political whims of the presidency. Of course, the Justice Department has argued in court repeatedly across this administration that independent agencies aren't a thing and that everything is supposed to be subject to the political whims of the White House, which historically has not been true. But I think they take that sort of theoretical idea of the unitary executive as a serious one in how the Justice Department works as well, that they want President Trump calling the shots.

19:54And Todd Blanche has said, and I'm forgetting the quote exactly, but something like Americans should be thankful that the president is involved in the day-to-day operations of the Justice Department. I, for one, am not. I don't think Senators Tillis or Cornyn should be either.

20:08Amy Powell:And then there was this slip of the tongue, Freudian slip during friendly questioning by Republican Senator John Kennedy. Are you and President Trump friends? I'm his lawyer, was his lawyer, and now I'm the deputy attorney general. I'm not sure how much we should make of that, but it's hard to ignore it. Is it a Freudian I mean, it's easy to pile on, right? But he says he's the president's lawyer. He means he's Donald Trump's lawyer. And he acts that way. In any case, you know, that is his view. And he has repeatedly expressed it. It's that in practice, he has not acted as independent or like he's even providing independent counsel in any meaningful way.

20:51Amy Powell:I thought they didn't spend enough time on the state of the Justice Department under Blanche and Bondi before him. Here's Senator Sheldon Whitehouse questioning Blanche about the fact that judges have criticized the department and its lawyers over their behavior in court cases. Words like pretext mean a lot coming from a judge about a government argument, usually enjoying the presumption of regularity. We need answers. I need you to be able to tell me that this kind of misconduct is going to stop if you're confirmed as attorney general. Can you say that? The Department of Justice works hard. The prosecutors work hard every day.

21:38And I appreciate the handpicked words that you have behind you right now. But that's not reflective of the hundred thousand indictments and informations that have been filed to do the work that I talked about earlier today.

21:53Amy Powell:I mean, there's case after case of federal judges complaining about the actions of Justice Department attorneys or Justice Department attorneys not following their orders, even allegations of misconduct before grand juries. And the Justice Department may be losing that presumption of regularity. Yeah, there are repeated instances of judges finding that the presumption of regularity didn't apply or should be overcome. For those not familiar listening, the presumption of regularity is the idea that the court will presume that the government is acting in good faith in the ordinary course and carrying out its duties as it is supposed to.

22:39which is the sort of thing we as Americans, most of us tend to assume that the government officials are attempting to do their job in good faith and attempting to comply with the rules. The presumption just meant that absent some evidence to the contrary, they're going to assume that these officials are acting in good faith and consistent with the rules. Courts are repeatedly finding that overcome. There is a website, I think, managed by Just Security, which is collecting instances where courts have explicitly rejected the presumption of regularity under the circumstances, which I don't know if it's up to date.

23:13But for a former government attorney like myself, it is a daunting list. That is a presumption that has been overcome before, right? It is only a presumption, but rarely, not with such regularity, not with such vehemence. Courts are angry. And it's not like, I mean, I'm not really sure there are all that many woke radical leftist judges out there. I'm not sure that's a category that exists. But many of the people who are finding against the government in these instances are Republican appointees, even Trump appointees, who are finding that the government has acted improperly. And, you know, some of that comes down to the Trump administration's mass deportation efforts, the attempt to deport as many people as possible as fast as possible with very little planning or forethought and unleashing untrained agents to carry that out has just led to an overwhelming number of cases, especially habeas petitions.

24:10And the government is frankly, probably unable to comply with the law in some instances, unable to comply with court orders, because they're just not organized or together enough, even if they had enough attorneys, which they don't. And they've taken so many efforts to, frankly, drive attorneys out of the department. And I don't say that to say that the attorneys there are all terrible or doing the wrong thing. Quite the opposite. I was a career attorney for a very long time. And I firmly believe for the most part that the folks still there are as career attorneys are attempting to do the right thing, to comply with the law and court's orders as best as possible.