Acting AG Blanche Vows DOJ Not Targeting Trump's Political Enemies

Todd Blanche arrived at the Justice Department as its acting head with a promise and a contradiction. Appearing on Fox News just hours after Trump dismissed Pam Bondi as Attorney General on April 2, Blanche told host Jesse Watters that the department was not focused on going after the president's political opponents, even as the stated reason for Bondi's removal was, in substantial part, that she had not gone after them aggressively enough.

Trump's frustration with Bondi had been building for months. The president vented openly in a since-deleted Truth Social post, demanding to know: "What about Comey, Adam Shifty Schiff, Leticia??? They're all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done." The post named former FBI Director James Comey, California Senator Adam Schiff, and New York Attorney General Letitia James as figures Trump believed warranted prosecution. People familiar with the situation described Trump as growing increasingly frustrated with Bondi's inability to move cases forward against those targets, with the Jeffrey Epstein files controversy serving as a second, compounding grievance.

Blanche's elevation from Deputy AG marks a continuation of his years-long orbit around Trump. He left law firm Cadwalader in 2023 specifically to lead Trump's criminal defense, representing the president through the New York hush money trial, which ended in a conviction on 34 felony counts, and through two separate federal cases brought by special counsel Jack Smith, both abandoned after Trump returned to the White House. Despite the conviction, Trump nominated Blanche as Deputy AG at the start of his second term, calling him "a very talented and respected Legal Mind." Once a registered Democrat in New York, Blanche later re-registered as a Republican in Florida.

The personnel moves Blanche made during his time as Deputy AG now function as a kind of operational record. He placed two prosecutors involved in the Eric Adams corruption case on administrative leave and dismissed Liz Oyer, the department's pardon attorney. Oyer later stated she was fired after declining Blanche's request to add actor Mel Gibson to a list of individuals whose firearm rights should be restored.

On the Epstein files, Blanche sought to draw a firm line during the Fox News interview. "To the extent the Epstein files was a part of the past year of this Justice Department, it should not be a part of anything going forward," he said, defending Bondi's handling of the matter and urging the department to move on. Even Watters pressed him on whether Bondi had mishandled the files, a moment a CNN panel later greeted with audible laughter.

Critics have characterized Blanche's record as Deputy AG as evidence of a systematic erosion of the department's independence from the White House, arguing his approach treats presidential preference as operational directive rather than as legal counsel. That assessment carries particular weight as Democrats and voting rights organizations raise alarms that the Justice Department and FBI could be used to interfere in November's midterm elections. The DOJ has already begun seeking voter registration data from states, a move election experts say could be used to undermine confidence in the results.

Bondi's exit is Trump's second Cabinet-level dismissal in as many months, following his removal of Kristi Noem as Secretary of Homeland Security. Trump is now reportedly weighing EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin as a permanent replacement, though no nomination has been announced. Bondi said she would spend the coming month working to transition the office to Blanche.

The gap between Blanche's public assurances and his documented record as the department's No. 2 official is precisely what legal observers say they will be measuring in the weeks ahead.