Cornyn cancels meeting with Blanche ahead of key committee vote on AG nomination

Just one day before the Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on Todd Blanche's nomination for attorney general, his future as the nation's top law enforcement official remains uncertain. Blanche was on Capitol Hill on Wednesday to meet with a series of senators. But a pivotal meeting with holdout Republican Sen. John Cornyn, whose support on the committee is essential for Blanche to advance, was canceled at the last minute over lingering concerns over President Donald Trump's settlement with the IRS and the administration's so-called 'Anti-Weaponization Fund.' Cornyn said he canceled the meeting because the Department of Justice has yet to provide him with satisfactory documentation to meet his demands that the fund be rescinded and that the scope of the IRS audit immunity agreement in the settlement be narrowed. As part of Trump's settlement with the IRS, the DOJ issued an addendum, signed by Blanche in his role as acting attorney general, that would bar the government from continuing any existing audits of tax returns filed by Trump, his family and their companies. 'To me, it's pretty simple. They could state that in a modified release form, and that would be responsive to my request. But for some reason, I don't know whether it's the staff of the DOJ or who it is, but they simply -- they know what they need to do, but they simply refuse to do it,' Sen. Cornyn told reporters after the meeting with Blanche was canceled. However, the agency did provide Cornyn with a draft order from the Office of the Attorney General rescinding the $1.8 billion so-called 'Anti-Weaponization Fund' and an explanation about why it was being rescinded. But the revised order does not change anything related to the audit portion of the settlement.