Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche boasted Thursday that he is installing "roadblocks" inside the Justice Department to prevent Democrats from prosecuting President Donald Trump after his term ends — the latest in a string of moves critics say have turned the DOJ into a personal protection service for the president.
"We can just keep on exposing it and putting roadblocks in place so it never happens again," Blanche told NewsNation host Katie Pavlich in an exclusive interview, first surfaced by journalist Aaron Rupar, adding that he worries about "some Democrats coming out and actually already forecasting what they're gonna try to do if they get leadership again."
It isn't the first time Blanche has used his perch atop the DOJ to benefit Trump directly. Last month, Blanche signed a one-page addendum declaring the federal government "FOREVER BARRED" from pursuing any IRS audit or tax claim against Trump, his family, or his businesses — part of a settlement stemming from Trump's $10 billion lawsuit over the leak of his tax records. Critics dispute the administration's claim that the protection covers only existing audits and not future ones.
Blanche also spent weeks defending a nearly $1.8 billion taxpayer-funded "anti-weaponization" fund before killing it after Senate Republicans revolted.
And last November, Blanche urged young lawyers at a Federalist Society conference to join what he called a "war" against "rogue activist judges" blocking Trump's agenda — remarks that drew a sharp rebuke from a coalition of 50 former federal judges.
Blanche was Trump's personal criminal defense attorney before joining the administration, representing him in three of his four criminal cases.