Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) put acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on the spot during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday about his personal crypto dealings and his transfer of wealth to members of his family.
The ranking committee minority leader switched gears on the Donald Trump appointee, while noting the president has also been cashing in on crypto under suspicious circumstances.
“Every smarmy suspect deal in this administration has cryptocurrency behind the curtain,” Durbin said. “And again, it has happened when it comes to the billion-dollar windfall that went to the president in his first year in office.”
Durbin was only getting started.
“Shortly after you were confirmed as deputy attorney general, you issued an order dismantling DOJ's crypto enforcement team and shutting down ongoing criminal investigations of the crypto industry,” Durbin pointed out. “At the time, you owned at least $159,000 worth of crypto-related assets while you eventually divested those assets didn't go far — you simply transferred them to your child, your children and grandchild.”
Blanche's mouth remained firmly shut.
“With the crypto enforcement unit out of the way, President Trump brought in $1.4 billion from his family's cryptocurrency business in 2020 alone, “ Durbin continued. “In April 2024, the founder of the crypto company Binance was sentenced to prison and ordered to pay $50 million fine for a money laundering scheme. a $50 million fine. He then brokered a deal to channel $2 billion into the trump family's crypto business, World Liberty Finance, after which President Trump pardoned him.”
Durbin's detailed attack was met with a stony stare from Blanche.