“Todd Blanche has failed to make it out of committee” - Deadline: White House

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[00:00]
Nicole Wallace
Watch Disclosure Day at home now with exclusive bonus features. If you found out we weren't alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? Well, now the truth belongs to 7 billion people in an original event film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by David Koepp, starring Emily Blunt, Josh o', Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson and Colman Domingo. Find Disclosure Day on major digital platforms now with no subscription required. Also in theaters.
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Ben Rhodes
Can I just quickly say hello to you?
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Carolyn Lennig
For me, being a part of this place has always been about the people, not about the politics.
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Ben Rhodes
Why are you holding this sign?
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Carolyn Lennig
You ever been to a protest before? Be safe. People that we cover who allow us to enter their lives. How's everybody doing? Everybody doing okay? How long you guys been in line? I love human beings. To spend time connecting with them is the biggest blessing that I could ask for.
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MS Now Announcer
From the field to the studio, Jacob is finding the heart of the story. Connect with Jacob soborough weekends at 10am Eastern on Ms. Now.
[01:06]
Nicole Wallace
Hi there, everyone. It's four o'clock in the east. A rare setback for Donald Trump today from the Republican controlled Senate, where two GOP senators finally found their gag reflex for when flagrant lawlessness and corruption becomes too much to stop. Todd Blanch, the most sycophantic and politically compliant of Donald Trump's six prior picks to lead the Department of Justice, has failed so far to make it out of committee. Republicans are refusing to advance Blanche's nomination without their demands being met on that controversial deal struck this spring over Trump's lawsuit against the irs. A vote was scheduled this morning to move Todd Blanche's nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee. But that vote was canceled hours before because Republican Senators Thom Tillis and John Cornyn are still holding firm and saying that they are no votes unless they get assurances from the Department of Justice in writing limiting the central provisions in that controversial deal. They want Donald Trump's $1.8 million slush fund that could allow payouts, cash payouts, to January 6th. Riders officially dead in writing. They're not going to take Todd Blanche's word for it. They also want the broad tax audit immunity for Donald Trump, his kids and their businesses that a judge has already questioned as being illegal, pared back to make sure it does not extend to Trump family future actions. While proposals have reportedly gone back and forth between DOJ and the two senators, any progress seems to have screeched to a halt. Here's Sean Cornyn talking to our colleague Ali Vitale earlier and where he thinks the resistance to amending that deal comes from.
[02:46]
Ali Vitale
He was saying he thinks that this might be because you don't like him.
[02:50]
John Cornyn
You know, I voted with him 99.3% of the time. That has nothing to do with it. This is about making sure that even if you're the President, United States, you don't get favorable terms from the government in a settlement of a lawsuit that ordinary citizens would not get, like protection from audits. As I've said all along, what we're trying to do is get the, get Mr. Blanche to conform the settlement documents in the tax lawsuit to where the sworn testimony was in the hearing, and I'd be satisfied with that. But I don't know, somebody, somewhere, I don't know whether it's the White House or somebody works there or somebody works for the President is basically telling him, don't agree to those terms. And so we're kind of back to square one.
[03:50]
Ali Vitale
Hmm.
[03:50]
Nicole Wallace
Someone who could it be? Pressure from the two GOP holdouts was enough that Trump posted this online today. Quote, todd Blanche is a star. He has the potential to go down as one of the greatest attorney generals of all time. Remember, both Cornyn and Tillis voted for Merrick, Garland and others too numerous to mention. I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd's name if they do not do the right thing and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office. Now, it's no shock that Trump would rather shelve the Blanche nomination, embarrass Todd Blanche by putting his coveted promotion to be Attorney General on ice, rather than just take the deal, agree to limit the tax immunity that he stands to profit from, because, as the New York Times reports today, quote, that the fate of an attorney general would be jeopardized by the administration's apparent determination to keep in place a tax deal offering a sitting president enormous financial advantages illustrated a defining characteristic of Trump's second term. A president's personal interest along with public interest is now a factor in governing. Now, breaking in just the last hour, Todd Blanche was back meeting with Cornyn. So we'll stay on top of any developments there. Todd Blanche has stalled confirmation to be Attorney General after all that he has done. On the ropes, thanks to members of Trump's own political party, is where we start today with some of our favorite experts and friends. New York Times Justice Department reporter Glenn Thresh is here. Also joining us, former top DOJ official and general counsel for the FBI. Our legal analyst Andrew Weissman is back and Ms. Now senior investigative Reporter Carol Lennig is here. Carol, I'll start with you. Your latest reporting.
[05:34]
Ali Vitale
Well, I think Ali Vitale takes the cake for great reporting today by getting John Cornyn to explain exactly, very logically why he is not voting for Todd Blanche's confirmation at this point. What's most interesting about what we're hearing, Nicole, from sources, is Blanche really wants confirmation. Right. He worked his tail off to do exactly what Donald Trump sought from him. He used every trick in the book to push forward prosecutions that even former Attorney general, fired, Attorney General Pam Bondi struggled with. And so this is not pleasing to him, which I believe is what's at the heart, forgive me for my beeping sources, is at the heart of him meeting again with Cornyn this afternoon, something we'll be monitoring. What's critical here is the Department of Justice is in the business of putting things in writing, and the Attorney General does not, forgive me, the acting attorney general, seeking confirmation, desperately wanting it, is not at liberty, at the behest of the White House and Donald Trump not at liberty to put these things in writing to make it clear that the weaponization fund of $1.76 billion is dead, literally dead, as Blanche has claimed, and is not willing to answer questions about paring back this broad immunity that a federal judge has already called into serious question.
[07:06]
Nicole Wallace
You know, Glenn Thresh, what's amazing to me is that we could all be on the air together and the story could change and Cornyn could see enough in terms of, you know, something in writing saying the slush fund's dead. But what Todd Blanch will never get back is the perception that he has any power or influence with Donald Trump, because all Donald Trump had to do is after the hearing, put it, let him, put it, let top Blanche put in writing that the slush fund was dead and Donald Trump maimed in the same way he maimed Jay Clayton, who couldn't utter the word W o N, and Kevin Warsh, who wouldn't say who won the election. He maimed Todd Blanche in that he proved that he has no power to say nothing of independence, to say nothing of authority to run the Department of Justice.
[07:54]
Glenn Thrush
That's the striking thing here. It's not like John Cornyn is standing in the way on a broader argument of principle. It's not like he's stopping this nomination based on an argument he actually made in the hearing. Was Todd Blanche independent? Was he Donald Trump's personal lawyer? No, I think. Ali, what did Cornyn say? 99.3% of the time, the remarkable thing is this fund, and particularly the IRS deal, almost seems like a dare to Republicans in the Senate. It was almost like, I'm going to push my personal lawyer through to be permanent attorney general and you guys are going to have to swallow this thing that's going to get thrown in your face during the midterms. Let's see if you go for it. And the remarkable part about it is not necessarily that Cornyn and Tillis, Tillis, much less so, stood up at the 11th hour. But whether or not they're going to capitulate eventually after some presidential pressure, it just shows you the power that Trump still has within the jewel case of the Republican primary. An influence, by the way, that he doesn't seem to have in the general election. That's the pressure differential. He's at 32 to 39% in polls, but he's way up there, 80% still in the Republican base. And that puts people like Corn Untillis and John Thune in a hell of a position.
[09:21]
Nicole Wallace
Well, I mean, Glenn, to your political point, I mean, this is what's showing up in town halls. Like, this isn't just showing up in polling. This is showing up in Republican interactions with voters where they're not just mad because everything is unpopular. As has been pointed out already, a slush fund where the money goes to insurrectionists who beat up cops isn't even a question you have to put in a poll. It's deeply unpopular. They're unpopular because they're so weak. And no one is weaker now, today, right now, regardless of whether he's confirmed or not, than Todd lynch, who, after all he's done for Trump, right? Like he argues the Alvin Bragg case, he does things that Pam Bondi wouldn't do. Someday that sentence will be written in a history book and people will see what those things were, right? Indicting Jim Comey over seashells, purging the department of more career prosecutors, further upending the rule of law. And then when his own prize was like, right there within reach, Trump throws him on the hamster wheel and says, run, hamster, run. I'm not letting you put it in writing that the slush fund is dead. I think in terms of all the ritual humiliations we've covered over nine years, this one takes the cake.
[10:30]
Glenn Thrush
I would say it's, I've likened it over the years not to a ritual humiliation, but a gang initiation. Like, what are you willing to do for me in order to prove that you're loyal to me? Again, let me just emphasize, and I Think Carol made this point too. Like how little, how very, very little John Cornyn is asking for here. He's not asking for this IRS deal, which is extraordinary, which was negotiated inside a circle of lawyers who all know each other and represent Donald Trump. Plaintiff and defense side were operating generally in the same interest, according to the judge that was adjudicating the case. Right. And all, all that John Cornyn wants is something in writing to cover two points. The first point is that the IRS tax immunity thing is only retrospective and that the second point is that it not extend to a wider group of people than previously thought. It's not like he's looking to get rid of the deal, which even, even most Republicans have already told Blanche they think is entirely inappropriate and self dealing. He's asking for very, very little. And the President, you know, we'll find out. We've heard that Blanche is meeting with, with Cornyn off campus. We'll find out if they've worked out an agreement. But at the moment, Trump or quote unquote, these mythical staffers are not willing to give Cornyn this very, very, very slender victory.
[11:55]
Nicole Wallace
I mean, Andrew Riceman, I think the embarrassing thing, and I feel like vicarious embarrassment for some reason for Todd Blanche is that they won't let Todd Blanche give John Cornyn this very, very, very, very, very narrow little thing to get him confirmed. I mean, he's Trump's guy, he's Trump's Ray Donovan, and Trump won't let him give Cornyn this itty bitty little thing to get confirmed.
[12:18]
Carolyn Lennig
That's the thing I really want to foot stomp on what everyone is saying here, which is this is where we are, we are talking about crumbs. I was talking with Carol before we got on about this is the state of affairs here. Todd Blanche is somebody who was found to be vindictive by a federal judge in the Abrego Garcia case. He tried to have a criminal investigation of the Federal Reserve and Jerome Powell and was shot down. He tried to indict six members of Congress and the grand jury said no. He, in my view, obstructed the independent investigation into the murder of Alex Preddy and Renee Good. He has violated the Epstein Transparency act again, in my view, up one side and down the other. And this is all that this is being held up on is, oh, the general release of the President should be narrower when it shouldn't be existing at all, that the fund shouldn't be used to go to convicted criminals. You can use other money at the Department of Justice. To go to convicted criminals. In fact, they're doing it, but just not this big fund. I mean, this is how sort of bankrupt the Congress is right now, that this is where we are and how normalized it is that is sort of focusing on this sort of these. These real table scraps when there's such wrongdoing that's gone on.
[13:54]
Nicole Wallace
I want to show you what Blanche is on the record already saying about the fund. This is, again, his sworn testimony at the confirmation hearing.
[14:08]
John Cornyn
I believe you have said that the weaponization fund is a moot issue. Is that your position?
[14:14]
Carolyn Lennig
Yes, it is a moot issue. Meaning the. There is no weaponization fund. The weaponization fund is dead. It's not moving forward.
[14:22]
John Cornyn
Has there been a written agreement of the parties to modify the settlement fund?
[14:26]
Carolyn Lennig
No, the settlement fund's just not moving forward. There's not.
[14:29]
Nicole Wallace
There's no modification.
[14:30]
Carolyn Lennig
It's just. It never started.
[14:34]
Nicole Wallace
I mean, carolinig, it is a moment, speaking of crumbs, for us to settle into the crumbs that we have of resistance here. I mean, there was a point in the Trump story where that would have been enough, but now, I guess, because judges no longer believe Tod Blanche, neither does John Cornyn. And Cornyn, we should point out, tweeted earlier today to Trump saying Trump is mistaken if he believes concerns about the provisions in the tax lawsuit settlement are committed to me and Senator Tillis, suggesting that there are other Republicans who think it smells as well.
[15:09]
Ali Vitale
Well, Nicole, I think we know from good reporting here, but also plenty of colleagues of mine who cover the White House and the Justice Department. We know that numerous Republicans were basically jumping up and down, calling the White House, calling Trump himself in some instances, saying, wait a minute, $1.7 billion, including potentially for people who beat up cops with fire extinguishers whose violence led to the death of two officers who attacked the seed of democracy. Wait a sec. Hold up there. What's also really interesting about the decision by Blanch, which irritated Tillis and Cornyn weeks and weeks ago, was in the hearing you just played, he was asked, so can you put that in writing? And his response was, I said it. What else do you need? Well, there's a problem in the Department of Justice, which is they've entered in this agreement into the record. You can find it in what nerds like me call pacer, it's electronic system where we know what it says. Nothing is correcting it or mooting it. And so it's not so much distrusting Blanche as distrusting his claim that it's no longer in effect when. When on paper it is.
[16:39]
Nicole Wallace
There was an interesting mention from another Republican senator, Senator Cassidy Glenn, about the Cassidy Hutchinson case, which I know is something you've reported on. This is from another tweet from a Semaphore reporter. It says, cassidy says, quote, I have to make sure that he is the Attorney General who used to be the President's personal attorney, not the personal attorney who's also the attorney general. Quote, I'm concerned about lawfare going after people. Cassidy Hutchinson, for example, a grand jury, I'm told, is being empaneled, going after her. Why? Tell me that again.
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Ali Vitale
Why?
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Nicole Wallace
The fact that that's happening has great concern and should concern all Americans, because where does it stop? Well, I mean, as we all know, it doesn't stop at Cassidy Hutchinson. It extends to Jerome Powell and six Democratic lawmakers who told members of the military to disobey illegal orders. And on and on and on. What do you make of Cassidy's objection over lawfare, which is sort of the. I mean, that is, if the department is anything, it is in the business of retribution and lawfare.
[17:45]
Glenn Thrush
It just seems, you know, and we've reported on this and, you know, last summer, the extraordinary, the extraordinary truth social message that we think was a direct message to Pam Bondi, asking her explicitly to target people. I mean, you just don't get more direct. Right. Than that. One thing you'd say about Trump is he doesn't really beat around the Bush. I mean, the whole thing about these prosecutions, again, they are not. They're not something that the department is hiding. I think this gets though, however, to the reason why Tillis and Cornyn, in my view, will ultimately, and again, I want to make any predictions on this, but I do sense that they, they're looking for a way to say yes, Right. As opposed to a way to say no here. And the reason is that they genuinely believe that Blanche is the least terrible of all the options. And I'll duck while you throw rotten fruit at me when I say that. But I do think that that is. I am simply reporting the mindset. I think of a lot of the senators, a lot of the Republican senators who, who are convinced that Blanche himself is a moderating influence. And I think their article, number one in that argument is that Blanche dissuaded. Dissuaded Trump from going after Jerome Powell, the Fed, the former head of the Fed, and that Blanche has attempted in a relatively small.
[19:06]
Nicole Wallace
Wait, wait, Trump isn't dissuaded from going after Powell A judge doesn't even let them take the first investigative step. They quash the subpoenas. Trump's not dissuaded. They fail. They go for it. They go for the Powell investigation, and they're stopped by a judge.
[19:21]
Glenn Thrush
I am channeling their argument, but I'm just.
[19:27]
Nicole Wallace
Give them a copy of your newspaper.
[19:30]
Glenn Thrush
No, this is the argument. No, look, whether or not they're subject to a collective delusion, whether or not this is what they're telling themselves, but I think there is a general belief that what will come next will be worse. Let me tell you something else. I mean, Todd Blanche's behavior while he is auditioning for this job since Bondi got kicked out for not executing Trump's retribution agenda in April, he has definitely turned up the volume. He started to parrot Trump's election fraud, falsehoods. And I think here's an interesting question. Let's say this gets blocked and Blanche remains acting attorney general. I think it's an interesting question to ask ourselves how he will behave if he doesn't have the potential reward of being named permanent attorney general ahead of him. Will that actually create even less of a boundary or an incentive for him to stop Trump from doing what Trump wants to do?
[20:27]
Nicole Wallace
I mean, I'm not in the business of guessing if a quacking duck is going to quack louder or more softly, a duck's a duck. So we think we can surmise that he'll keep quacking. No one goes anywhere. I want to bring Andrew in on that question because that is the delusion that Republicans seem to have wrapped themselves in. But the notion of a moderating force is how we ended up with a head of intelligence. You can't say who won the 2020 election. Also ahead for us, the world is watching all of this, and they were watching yesterday. The absolute disgrace of a performance by a group of Senate Republicans yesterday attacking Dr. Anthony Fauci. The surprising new voices speaking out against them and against this witch hunt of a career scientist and public health official. Someone comparing Republicans to the time of Joseph McCarthy. Plus leaving Americans more vulnerable than they have been in a generation. We'll look at the administration's dangerous dismantling of terrorism protections put in place after 9, 11 and later, how Democrats are mobilizing voters to stand up against a president who shows day after day his singular focus is on enriching himself in office. Senator Cory Booker joins us on that office, those stories and much more when Deadline White House continues after a quick break. Don't go anywhere. Watch disclosure day at home now with exclusive bonus features. If you found out we weren't alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? Well, now the truth belongs to 7 billion people in an original event film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by David Koepp, starring Emily Blunt, Josh o', Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson and Colman Domingo. Find Disclosure Day on major digital platforms now with no subscription required. Also in theaters.
[22:19]
MS Now Announcer
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[22:36]
Glenn Thrush
I just hope that these two senators,
[22:38]
Carolyn Lennig
and particularly Senator Cornyn, don't settle for too little. The president has been able to engage
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Glenn Thrush
in so much over the top corruption because the Senate and the House are
[22:48]
John Cornyn
not acting as a check on his power.
[22:51]
Glenn Thrush
The Congress is in a way back to doing its institutional job in rejecting purely unqualified people or people who should be disqualified for abusing the positions they already have. So it's an important statement that Congress
[23:05]
Nicole Wallace
is not willing to roll over for
[23:07]
Glenn Thrush
this president on everything.
[23:11]
Nicole Wallace
We're back with Glenn, Andrew and Carol. Andrew, I want to pull you into the conversation I was having with Glenn at the end of the last block. I mean, the fact that this is what we're talking about and I think under truth serum, every last one of us believes that Todd Blanche will ultimately be confirmed by Republicans and that Tillis and Corey will find a way to get to yes, as all the reporting suggests they're trying to do. But this isn't just about the unthinkable thing of creating a slush fund to hand out cash to violent insurrectionists who were convicted by juries of their peers and pleaded guilty, admitted to the crimes that they were charged with, for the most part, of beating up cops and storming the Capitol and defecating inside the United States Capitol, those are the things that are going to be paid for after being pardoned for doing those criminal acts. This is also Republicans signing on to everything else. And I think it's a disservice to focus in on this one thing. This is Republicans saying the First Amendment and all the stuff that got us so mad at Twitter is only when our side's voices are restrained or the brakes are put on them or they're censored. But when five New York Times journalists are subpoenaed and asked to go before a grand jury to give up their sources and we don't care, we're going to go ahead and confirm the guy that signed off on that. When someone is indicted. And even if all this young Republican conservative legal talent flees the Department of Justice because they know how corrupt the indictment of Jim Comey is, or the investigation of Jerome Powell is, or the effort to indict six lawmakers is, we're going to look the other way about that. We don't care about what happens inside the department. Shame on them. And shame on us for focusing on the Microsoft when the macro is just as appalling.
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Carolyn Lennig
This is a Congress that passed the Epstein Transparency act and now doesn't have the backbone to actually stand by their own law and say until you comply with it, we are not confirming the head of the Justice Department who is flouting the law we passed. That is where we are. And to the argument of the president could nominate someone worse, that's not a, that's not the standard for confirmation that I could think of somebody worse. And traditionally the way this works is you put somebody up who is not confirmed, that sends the message to, as you know, it sends the message that you pick somebody who is more moderate who is going to be confirmable. It is not, oh, well, now I'm going to send you somebody worse. Because guess what the Senate can do at that point? They can still say no. Oh, you send somebody worse, it's still no. And so again, this really goes to the theme that we've all been focusing on, which is that we are focusing on such crumbs that this is the normalization of where we are is so striking. And remember, what we are seeing now from Todd Blanche is him at his best because he wants something. And just remember the way that we saw Pam Bondi and Kash Patel behave as soon as they were confirmed. Well, that's the Act 2 that we will see from Todd Blanche. This is him where there is at least some leverage on his performance.
[26:44]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah, I mean, and Andrew, it's a farce that no one has asked any questions about phone records. I mean, again, Republicans used to care about that. You know, if you read the filings, the legal documents which are now available from the. I mean, they were listening to and scooping up phone records from journalists and their parents. Imagine if that was Sean Hannity's phone record and his family members or his kids or his partner or his spouse or I mean, the inability to do any. And I know we're in post fact, I know we're in post functional three branches of government. So, you know, spare me my civics aches. And pains here, but the notion that he's going through and no one has asked any questions about whose records they're scooping up and whether they'll stop subpoenaing journalists records after a story's written that they don't like. And I mean, the notion that they vetted him at all seems like the other part of the farce.
[27:41]
Carolyn Lennig
Yeah. So let me just focus for a second on the New York Times story so peoplejust so people understand what Todd Blanche has done here. There is a court appearance where the federal judge in New York says, let me just understand. You are admitting that you erroneously subpoenaed the mother of journalists. You're admitting that you erroneously subpoenaed the spouses of journalists. You are admitting that you did not read the leading case on point and that you in fact are in violation of the law because you didn't actually know the law in this circuit. And now you're trying to sort of backfill because you actually hadn't read it. And all of this, it went on and on and on. It just kept on getting worse and worse. And, and when that was over, the Department of Justice, led by Todd Blanche, issues a statement that says that the judge is out of control and attacks the judge after a performance by the Department of Justice that would have any normal prosecutor curled up in a fetal position in their bedroom not wanting to see the light of day. It was so appalling how that is under Todd Blanche's Department of Justice.
[29:06]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah. I mean, from the sort of comically incompetent to the tragically dangerous carolinic threats against judges are they're not even at an all time high because they've never been like this. So I don't want to suggest they're up and then they go down and they go back up. There are more threats against judges, including judges appointed by plenty of Republican presidents, including and up to Donald Trump in his first term, who are in some instances just privately doing different things to protect their security and that of their family. And in other instances, posting threats coming from the general counsel of the Department of Homeland Security.
[29:41]
Ali Vitale
Oh, I'm so glad you brought that up, Nicole. It is a little bit challenging for me. I don't want to name the judges who I know whose lives and whose children's lives have been threatened because I don't want to speak more violence into the atmosphere for them. But it's really like heartbreaking to watch people that, you know, I don't have any personal stake in their positions or their opinions. But they are public servants who could have made a lot of money working in a private law firm on the white collar defense side. And instead they chose to take on these cases, follow the law. And especially in the U.S. district court in D.C. so many of them have had their lives and their family members lives, their children's lives threatened. And now that is the number one thing they're dealing with while they're getting emergency motions from various plaintiffs saying the government is wronging me, is wronging this group of immigrants is violating the law here. And we ask that you remedy this. We ask that you rule on these decisions and those judges continue to take those cases. And hats off to them for facing this horrible thing with this stick in their teeth.
[31:01]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah. And Todd Blanche chief among them in terms of smearing judges who don't rule in his way. Glenn Thrash, Andrew Weisman. Caroline, thank you so much for starting us off on this day. After the break, the new voices who have had enough, enough of the witch hunt, enough of the denialism of fact, facts that are clear in front of all of our eyes. Has today's Republican led Congress become more like the congress of the McCarthy era? We'll talk about that next. You better eat your Wheaties today because there's a lot of news to cover. Money time for the business. All eyes on the new Fed chair. The economic fallout from the war is a temporary power. The president is now a major crypto industry operator. Is this White House for sale?
[31:47]
MS Now Announcer
Politics?
[31:48]
Nicole Wallace
Is there an energy to respond to this aggressive gerrymandering? It has never been more important to be informed and engaged.
[31:54]
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Money power Politics with Stephanie rule, weekdays at 9am Eastern on Ms. Now
[32:03]
Glenn Thrush
watching
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MS Now Announcer
Anthony Fauci before a congressional hearing. Taking the Fifth Amendment is just one of the most heartbreaking things I have seen in government in my lifetime. They want to prosecute him, they want to convict him and they want to throw him in prison. That's the point of this hearing. There is no other point of this hearing. We are in a Senator Joseph McCarthy climate where there is such fear that people have and legitimate fear that they'll end up in prison for what they say. We are in a dark period of America.
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Nicole Wallace
Sometimes it takes someone from outside of the immediate bubble to speak truth. That pops that bubble. That was the founder of tmz, Harvey Levin. On the shameful display by Senate Republicans yesterday. Just a small fraction of the overwhelming backlash Republicans received as Donald Trump and his allies try to do to Anthony Fauci what they've already done to Jim Comey. Tish James, John Brennan and other perceived political enemies of Donald Trump. They're weaponizing the government and as Harvey Levin says, they're trying to create a predicate for criminal prosecution of Anthony Fauci for simply doing his job. Former President Joe Biden went out of his way in the final days of his presidency to try to protect Fauci, issuing him a blanket pardon. Senate Republicans, led by Rand Paul, who released excerpts of Fauci's personal diary in advance of the hearing, dragged in front of the Senate Homeland Security Committee in an attempt to get Fauci to perjure himself and get around that pardon. Dr. Fauci refused to take the bait. He pleaded the fifth for the duration of the hearing, which Senate Republicans attempted to twist into some kind of admission of guilt. If pleading the Fifth is an admission of guilt, then someone should knock on Donald Trump's door. He invoked it more than 450 times. Rand Paul ejected Dr. Fauci's lawyer for attempting to answer our question and ended the hearing vowing to vote to hold Fauci in contempt of Congress. Joining our coverage is former deputy national security adviser President Obama, now co host of Pod Save the World, our contributor Ben Rhodes. Also joining us, former senior advisor to President Biden, Vice President Harris, former mayor of New Orleans, Mitch Landrieu is here. He's now the co chair of American Bridge, 21st century. Mitch, I'll start with you. I'm increasingly aware, I guess I'm always aware of the fact that the world is watching, that Americans pay attention to matters close to home. But around the world, people in a lot of instances pay closer attention than we do. And this is surely one of those stories on the front pages of a lot of newspapers around the country, a scientist who was so revered by George W. Bush and President Obama and President Clinton, a scientist who even Harvey Levin talked about his history of saving lives at the beginning of the AIDS epidemic. Let me play some of that for you, too. This is more Harvey Levin.
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MS Now Announcer
Anthony Fauci, over a period of decades, has been an amazing public servant. In the 80s, I had many friends who died of AIDS, a horrible, painful death. And I had friends who lived because of Anthony Fauci, because he was willing to look at experimental drugs in a different way than they had looked at them before. And that really resulted in lives saved. And he has done so many other things in his career to thwart epidemics, to save lives, not just in the United States, but all over the world.
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Nicole Wallace
Mitch, it says something sad when the defense of Anthony Fauci doesn't come from Washington, that it comes from the founder of tmz.
[36:32]
Mitch Landrieu
First of all, I agree with Barbara Levitt. I think Anthony Fauci is one of the great doctors of my time. For those of us that remember the AIDS crisis and had friends die from that, the work that Dr. Fauci did back then and the work that he continued throughout his career has just been exemplary. I think he's an American hero. Just to remind people, over a million people died in the United States from COVID and as I recall, I think Donald Trump was president at the time. I would also just like to point out that Senator Rand Paul is an eye doctor. He's not an infectious disease specialist. And Anthony Fauci is. That hearing yesterday was a travesty of justice. It was an embarrassment to the United States of America and to the American people. They should be ashamed of themselves for taking him through that. What they should have had a hearing about was how the nation can better prepare for the next pandemic that's coming so that we don't lose that many American lives. And I think American people watched that yesterday and concluded that these people are not only banal, but they actually have completely lost focus on what the American
[37:42]
Glenn Thrush
people want and what they want to
[37:44]
Mitch Landrieu
keep them safe and their kids safe in the future.
[37:49]
Nicole Wallace
Ben Rhodes, your thoughts?
[37:52]
Ben Rhodes
I want to pick up on something Mitch said, because, look, we can and should defend Dr. Fauci against these attacks, But Donald Trump was President United States this entire time period that they're focused on. Nicole, you've rightly pointed out repeatedly that all of his conspiracies about the 2020 election cover a time period when he was in charge of the United States government during that electoral period. And so there's just something truly absurd about the fact that Donald Trump as President United States is totally unaccountable for anything that they think went wrong with the COVID response. We're going to put everything on this one person, Dr. Fauci, because he kind of represents the, I don't know, the scientific establishment or something, when the reality is, if they're mad about the origins of COVID and Donald Trump is in charge of the entire US Intelligence community at that time. Right. He could have put out assessments. Donald Trump was in charge of Project Warp Speed to develop the vaccine. And so all these conspiracy theories and all these allegations that they level at Fauci. Well, the person in charge of all that was Donald Trump. And so just speaks to the absurdity of this. Nicole, they're not speaking to The American people, they're speaking to like the third of the American population that is kind of locked in a right wing media ecosystem bubble where the whole point is to not focus on the things that people care about in their lives, like the cost of living, like the war in Iran that has no end in sight. Like an economy that is increasingly for a very small number of rich people at the top. They just have to focus on whoever the villain of the week is to fill up the airtime and generate a lot of content. I mean, these are not people going to legislate or conduct oversight. They're people going to have viral clips in some deep recess of the right wing media ecosystem with the total intellectual and logical incoherence of the fact that they're yelling about a government response that was led by not Anthony Fauci, but Donald Trump, their cult leader. You know, and it's totally ridiculous. But the reason we have to take it seriously is that there are real consequences. They're trying to destroy people's lives and they're trying to criminalize people they don't like just for the views that they've taken. And that's why I think we do have to take it seriously.
[40:19]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah. I mean, Ben, he is telling his base we don't believe it because we have access to facts and reality. Trump is telling his base that only on his watch elections were corrupted while President Obama was in office and President Biden was in office. They were fine. And only on his watch, Anthony Fauci ran Amok all the 11, I don't know how many years. He had decades of service before that working for presidents of both parties. And all those previous presidents were able to keep Fauci focused on the mission. Some of them either did history altering things. He launched pepfar with George W. Bush, my old boss, but that only on Trump's watch, Anthony Fauci ran him up. I mean, I think, Ben, you raise a good point. Why didn't Trump fire him?
[41:04]
Ben Rhodes
Yeah, exactly. Trump was the one putting him on television. Trump was the one taking him to the White House briefing room. Right. Trump was the one signing off on they obsess over like a diary entry about Fauci supporting lockdowns as if Donald Trump had nothing to do with. With lockdowns are happening in the United States while he was president, United States. These are all decisions that he made or oversaw and it's totally absurd. And yes, the thing about Dr. Fauci, it does matter that you have a multi decade record. I mean, I was there in the obama years. Absent Dr. Fauci, I don't know how many more people could have died from the Ebola epidemic in Africa that got stomped out in part because of the expertise of Dr. Fauci. And there's so many stories like that. What I worry about, to take another angle here, Nicole, is this disincentivizes people from going into public service. If you want the best people to become the leaders of the CDC or the NIH or to go into the foreign service or the message that those Republicans are sending is we may come and try to destroy your life if you are an effective public servant, who rises to the top of these agencies. And I think that's a big problem that doesn't get enough attention. Who wants to go into politics, who wants to go into federal service when this is the treatment you get from people who are supposed to be making the government work better?
[42:24]
Nicole Wallace
All right, who wants to be a judge? Who wants to do any of these jobs? All right, no one's going anywhere. We'll bring Mitch back in on the other side. All three of us will be right back. We're back with Ben and Mitch. So, Mitch, I mean to. To pick up on Ben's point. What they are careening into the midterms with are election lies. Covid lies. Lies about how many people have lost their lives, have been injured in the war in Iran, and describing economic despair as, quote, a hoax created by Democrats. That's how Donald Trump describes the affordability crisis. Your plan, your thoughts?
[43:04]
Mitch Landrieu
Well, I've traveled around the country in the last 18 months, been in 21 different states, and talked to more people than count. People are focused on cost. They live in paycheck to paycheck. They're underneath it. They feel like they're incredibly burdened in the president. And this Congress wants to talk about everything except for that. The American people want them to focus on getting out of foreign wars and lowering their costs. And the president has failed spectacularly in that regard. And I believe that they're going to pay a very heavy price for it in the midterms.
[43:33]
Nicole Wallace
What are you picking up the most match out there? Is it. Is it exasperation at the cost of things, or is it exasperation that Trump won't focus on the thing that hurts them?
[43:43]
Mitch Landrieu
Well, they think he's definitely lost focus and he's betrayed them. People voted for him for two reasons, to stay out of major wars and to lower their cost. And they think he's done the exact opposite in both of those areas. People are really struggling out there, delivered paycheck to paycheck. They're having to choose between paying for health care and putting gas in their car. And they feel like he is not focused on their work. And of course, he's trying to distract in every which way that he can from that.
[44:08]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah, he sure is. Just build another arch. Mitch, thank you for joining us today. Ben sticks around a little bit longer after the break. Zero in 18. Trump's Justice Department just suffered its 18th defeat in its sweeping campaign to force states to disclose sensitive data about American voters. You and me, I'll tell you about it next. Donald Trump's Justice Department, legally at least, just keeps losing in its fight for full unconstitutional access to sensitive voting records nationwide. Yesterday, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by DOJ seeking unredacted personal information about the voters of New Jersey, plainly stating that it's, quote, not a record or paper that the state must produce to the United States, end quote. And in a telling line about the weakness of DOJ's argument and recent attempts to bolster its case, the judge writes this, quote, whether the DOJ is acting in good faith is not relevant to this court's analysis and has no bearing on whether plaintiff is entitled to the information it seeks in the opinion. The judge also points out that this is now the 18th consecutive loss for DOJ across the country in similar cases nationwide. We'll stay on top of that after the break. A new report details how Trump's massive cuts to the federal government has left more Americans vulnerable than in decades to terror threats. We'll get to that when Billing White House continues after a quick break. Watch Disclosure Day at home now with exclusive bonus features. If you found out we weren't alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? Well, now the truth belongs to 7 billion people in an original event film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by David Koepp, starring Emily Blunt, Josh o', Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson and Colman Domingo. Find Disclosure Day on major digital platforms now with no subscription required. Also in theaters.

Summary7 min read

Podcast Summary: “Todd Blanche has failed to make it out of committee”

Podcast: Deadline: White House
Host: Nicolle Wallace, MS NOW
Date: July 30, 2026
Theme: The breakdown of GOP support for Donald Trump’s nominee for Attorney General, Todd Blanche—exploring what stalled his confirmation, the broader implications for the rule of law, and the embarrassment inflicted on both Blanche and Senate Republicans. The episode also delves into GOP attacks on Dr. Anthony Fauci and the normalization of political retribution in the US government.

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode analyzes the rare intra-party revolt in the Senate against President Trump’s pick for Attorney General, Todd Blanche. Host Nicolle Wallace brings in legal, political, and investigative experts to break down why Blanche’s nomination stalled, what’s at stake with the controversial DOJ-IRS deal, and what this reveals about the current state of American politics—particularly the normalization of corruption and retaliatory justice. The conversation pivots to Senate Republicans targeting Dr. Anthony Fauci, examining the chilling effect these attacks have on public service.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Political Breakdown: Todd Blanche’s Nomination Stalls

Background: Todd Blanche, Donald Trump’s 7th pick for Attorney General, was expected to clear the GOP-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee. Two Republican Senators, John Cornyn (TX) and Thom Tillis (NC), withhold support due to concerns over a controversial DOJ settlement in Trump’s IRS lawsuit.
Core Issues:
- Demands for written assurances that a $1.8 billion “slush fund” (intended to support January 6th rioters) is dead, and that tax audit immunity for Trump and his family does not extend into the future.
- Blanche & the White House are unwilling to provide these in writing.
Insight by Glenn Thrush (NYT):

“It was almost like, I’m going to push my personal lawyer through to be permanent attorney general and you guys are going to have to swallow this thing that’s going to get thrown in your face during the midterms. Let’s see if you go for it.” [07:54]
Perception of Powerlessness: Blanche is humiliated, as Trump himself suggests shelving the nomination rather than submitting to the senators’ modest demands:

“I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd’s name...and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office.” —Donald Trump (quoted by Wallace) [03:50]

2. The Substance of GOP Resistance

John Cornyn (R-TX) Addresses Stalemate:

“This is about making sure that even if you’re the president...you don’t get favorable terms from the government in a settlement of a lawsuit that ordinary citizens would not get, like protection from audits.” [02:50]
Carolyn Lennig on DOJ’s Norms:

“The critical thing here is the Department of Justice is in the business of putting things in writing. The acting attorney general, seeking confirmation, is not at liberty... to make it clear that the weaponization fund... is dead...and is not willing to answer questions about paring back this broad immunity..." [05:34]

3. Senate Republicans’ Weakness & Public Outrage

Evidence of Political Risk: The slush fund is “deeply unpopular” with GOP voters, especially tying cash to convicted insurrectionists. Blanche’s vulnerability exposes Republicans’ desperation to support Trump despite ethical and political peril.
Wallace’s Assessment:

“No one is weaker now, today, than Todd Blanche, who after all he’s done for Trump...Trump throws him on the hamster wheel and says, run, hamster, run.” [09:21]
- Blanche’s humiliation is likened to Trump’s treatment of prior appointees.
- The episode underscores how Trump subordinates public interest to his own advantage.

4. The Minimalism of Senate Demands

Thrush:

“How very, very little John Cornyn is asking for here...the IRS deal, which is extraordinary...all Cornyn wants is something in writing to cover two points...” [10:30]
- The debate is over “crumbs,” while Congress ignores larger abuses.

5. The Normalization of Corruption & Political Lawfare

Legal Analyst Andrew Weissmann: Expresses 'vicarious embarrassment' for Blanche, highlighting how Trump’s team won’t permit even minor adjustments needed for Senate confirmation. [11:55]
Carolyn Lennig:

“This is how sort of bankrupt Congress is right now, that this is where we are and how normalized it is that is sort of focusing on these real table scraps when there’s such wrongdoing that’s gone on.” [12:18]
Blanche’s Sworn Testimony:

"There is no weaponization fund. The weaponization fund is dead.” —Blanche [14:14]
- But, as Lennig and others note, nothing is in writing and the agreement remains active on the legal record.

6. The Lawfare Machine: Targeting Enemies

Sen. Cassidy’s Concerns: The committee hears that DOJ, under Blanche, is empaneling a grand jury to investigate Cassidy Hutchinson—a warning about politically-motivated prosecution.
Thrush:

“The prosecutions...they are not something that the department is hiding...they genuinely believe that Blanche is the least terrible of all the options... I think their article, number one, is that Blanche dissuaded Trump from going after Jerome Powell...” [17:45]
Wallace Pushback:

“Trump isn’t dissuaded from going after Powell. A judge doesn’t even let them take the first investigative step...they go for it, and they’re stopped by a judge.” [19:05]

7. Broader Institutional Failure

Normalization of Abuses: Subpoenas of journalists and their families, investigation into perceived political enemies, and prosecution of former officials like Jim Comey and six lawmakers are highlighted as the new normal.
Wallace:

“...the notion that they vetted him at all seems like the other part of the farce.” [26:44]
Lennig:

“This is a Congress that passed the Epstein Transparency Act and now doesn’t have the backbone to...say until you comply with it, we are not confirming the head of the Justice Department who is flouting the law we passed.” [24:56]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Blanche’s Powerlessness:
“All Donald Trump had to do is after the hearing, let Todd Blanche put in writing that the slush fund was dead, and Donald Trump maimed...he maimed Todd Blanche in that he proved that he has no power to say nothing of independence...”
—Nicolle Wallace (07:06)
On the Senate’s Failure:
“This is how sort of bankrupt Congress is right now...when there’s such wrongdoing that’s gone on.”
—Carolyn Lennig (12:18)
On Lawfare and Political Retaliation:
“What do you make of Cassidy’s objection over lawfare, which is sort of the...I mean, if the department is anything, it is in the business of retribution and lawfare.”
—Nicolle Wallace (17:13)
On Journalists and Press Freedom:
“The inability to do any...subpoenaing journalists’ records after a story’s written they don’t like...the notion that they vetted him at all seems like the other part of the farce.”
—Nicolle Wallace (26:44)

Key Timestamps

01:05 – Nicolle Wallace outlines the rare GOP resistance to Blanche’s nomination; the slush fund and IRS immunity controversy.
02:50 – John Cornyn details his reasoning for holding up the nomination.
03:50 – Trump’s public statement on Blanche’s stalled confirmation.
05:34 – Carol Lennig explains DOJ’s refusal to put slush fund assurances in writing.
07:54 – Glenn Thrush on the political implications and dynamics of the Senate standoff.
10:30 – Thrush on how little GOP holdouts are demanding from the White House/DOJ.
12:18 – Lennig summarizes the normalization of corruption and political lawfare.
14:14 – Blanche’s sworn (but unwritten) assurance that the slush fund is dead.
19:05 – Wallace and Thrush debate whether Cornyn’s arguments about Blanche as a “moderate” are based in reality.
24:56 – Lennig on Congress’s failure to enforce its own laws and standards for nominees.
26:44 – Wallace on the farcical lack of vetting and oversight for DOJ nominees.
31:01–31:54 – Transition to Senate Republicans’ attacks on Dr. Anthony Fauci and what it signals about the climate of US politics.
32:03–37:41 – Harvey Levin and Mitch Landrieu defend Dr. Fauci’s record, condemn attacks as McCarthyist.
41:03 – Ben Rhodes on how attacks on Fauci are ultimately about deflecting blame from Trump’s own record.

Second Segment: The Attacks on Dr. Fauci

Framing: Senate Republicans attempt to criminalize Dr. Anthony Fauci through public hearings, despite blanket pardon granted by President Biden.
Harvey Levin (TMZ):

“We are in a Senator Joseph McCarthy climate where there is such fear...that they’ll end up in prison for what they say. We are in a dark period of America.” [32:04]
Mitch Landrieu:

“That hearing yesterday was a travesty of justice. It was an embarrassment to the United States of America and to the American people.” [36:32]
Ben Rhodes:

“The person in charge of all that was Donald Trump...they just have to focus on whoever the villain of the week is to fill up the airtime and generate a lot of content...” [37:52]
Broader Impact: Such attacks not only endanger individuals like Dr. Fauci but also discourage talented people from pursuing vital public service roles.

Concluding Points

Thread throughout: This episode paints a portrait of the current corrosion of American government, in which corruption, personal interest, and political vengeance have become normalized—and where even minimal efforts at accountability or moderation are treated as anathema within the president’s circle.
Resonant theme: The dangerous precedent set when basic institutional safeguards—written agreements, legal standards—are discarded for political expedience.

Loading summary

Transcript71 lines

[00:00]
Nicole Wallace
Watch Disclosure Day at home now with exclusive bonus features. If you found out we weren't alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? Well, now the truth belongs to 7 billion people in an original event film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by David Koepp, starring Emily Blunt, Josh o', Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson and Colman Domingo. Find Disclosure Day on major digital platforms now with no subscription required. Also in theaters.
[00:31]
Ben Rhodes
Can I just quickly say hello to you?
[00:33]
Carolyn Lennig
For me, being a part of this place has always been about the people, not about the politics.
[00:38]
Ben Rhodes
Why are you holding this sign?
[00:39]
Carolyn Lennig
You ever been to a protest before? Be safe. People that we cover who allow us to enter their lives. How's everybody doing? Everybody doing okay? How long you guys been in line? I love human beings. To spend time connecting with them is the biggest blessing that I could ask for.
[00:52]
MS Now Announcer
From the field to the studio, Jacob is finding the heart of the story. Connect with Jacob soborough weekends at 10am Eastern on Ms. Now.
[01:06]
Nicole Wallace
Hi there, everyone. It's four o'clock in the east. A rare setback for Donald Trump today from the Republican controlled Senate, where two GOP senators finally found their gag reflex for when flagrant lawlessness and corruption becomes too much to stop. Todd Blanch, the most sycophantic and politically compliant of Donald Trump's six prior picks to lead the Department of Justice, has failed so far to make it out of committee. Republicans are refusing to advance Blanche's nomination without their demands being met on that controversial deal struck this spring over Trump's lawsuit against the irs. A vote was scheduled this morning to move Todd Blanche's nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee. But that vote was canceled hours before because Republican Senators Thom Tillis and John Cornyn are still holding firm and saying that they are no votes unless they get assurances from the Department of Justice in writing limiting the central provisions in that controversial deal. They want Donald Trump's $1.8 million slush fund that could allow payouts, cash payouts, to January 6th. Riders officially dead in writing. They're not going to take Todd Blanche's word for it. They also want the broad tax audit immunity for Donald Trump, his kids and their businesses that a judge has already questioned as being illegal, pared back to make sure it does not extend to Trump family future actions. While proposals have reportedly gone back and forth between DOJ and the two senators, any progress seems to have screeched to a halt. Here's Sean Cornyn talking to our colleague Ali Vitale earlier and where he thinks the resistance to amending that deal comes from.
[02:46]
Ali Vitale
He was saying he thinks that this might be because you don't like him.
[02:50]
John Cornyn
You know, I voted with him 99.3% of the time. That has nothing to do with it. This is about making sure that even if you're the President, United States, you don't get favorable terms from the government in a settlement of a lawsuit that ordinary citizens would not get, like protection from audits. As I've said all along, what we're trying to do is get the, get Mr. Blanche to conform the settlement documents in the tax lawsuit to where the sworn testimony was in the hearing, and I'd be satisfied with that. But I don't know, somebody, somewhere, I don't know whether it's the White House or somebody works there or somebody works for the President is basically telling him, don't agree to those terms. And so we're kind of back to square one.
[03:50]
Ali Vitale
Hmm.
[03:50]
Nicole Wallace
Someone who could it be? Pressure from the two GOP holdouts was enough that Trump posted this online today. Quote, todd Blanche is a star. He has the potential to go down as one of the greatest attorney generals of all time. Remember, both Cornyn and Tillis voted for Merrick, Garland and others too numerous to mention. I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd's name if they do not do the right thing and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office. Now, it's no shock that Trump would rather shelve the Blanche nomination, embarrass Todd Blanche by putting his coveted promotion to be Attorney General on ice, rather than just take the deal, agree to limit the tax immunity that he stands to profit from, because, as the New York Times reports today, quote, that the fate of an attorney general would be jeopardized by the administration's apparent determination to keep in place a tax deal offering a sitting president enormous financial advantages illustrated a defining characteristic of Trump's second term. A president's personal interest along with public interest is now a factor in governing. Now, breaking in just the last hour, Todd Blanche was back meeting with Cornyn. So we'll stay on top of any developments there. Todd Blanche has stalled confirmation to be Attorney General after all that he has done. On the ropes, thanks to members of Trump's own political party, is where we start today with some of our favorite experts and friends. New York Times Justice Department reporter Glenn Thresh is here. Also joining us, former top DOJ official and general counsel for the FBI. Our legal analyst Andrew Weissman is back and Ms. Now senior investigative Reporter Carol Lennig is here. Carol, I'll start with you. Your latest reporting.
[05:34]
Ali Vitale
Well, I think Ali Vitale takes the cake for great reporting today by getting John Cornyn to explain exactly, very logically why he is not voting for Todd Blanche's confirmation at this point. What's most interesting about what we're hearing, Nicole, from sources, is Blanche really wants confirmation. Right. He worked his tail off to do exactly what Donald Trump sought from him. He used every trick in the book to push forward prosecutions that even former Attorney general, fired, Attorney General Pam Bondi struggled with. And so this is not pleasing to him, which I believe is what's at the heart, forgive me for my beeping sources, is at the heart of him meeting again with Cornyn this afternoon, something we'll be monitoring. What's critical here is the Department of Justice is in the business of putting things in writing, and the Attorney General does not, forgive me, the acting attorney general, seeking confirmation, desperately wanting it, is not at liberty, at the behest of the White House and Donald Trump not at liberty to put these things in writing to make it clear that the weaponization fund of $1.76 billion is dead, literally dead, as Blanche has claimed, and is not willing to answer questions about paring back this broad immunity that a federal judge has already called into serious question.
[07:06]
Nicole Wallace
You know, Glenn Thresh, what's amazing to me is that we could all be on the air together and the story could change and Cornyn could see enough in terms of, you know, something in writing saying the slush fund's dead. But what Todd Blanch will never get back is the perception that he has any power or influence with Donald Trump, because all Donald Trump had to do is after the hearing, put it, let him, put it, let top Blanche put in writing that the slush fund was dead and Donald Trump maimed in the same way he maimed Jay Clayton, who couldn't utter the word W o N, and Kevin Warsh, who wouldn't say who won the election. He maimed Todd Blanche in that he proved that he has no power to say nothing of independence, to say nothing of authority to run the Department of Justice.
[07:54]
Glenn Thrush
That's the striking thing here. It's not like John Cornyn is standing in the way on a broader argument of principle. It's not like he's stopping this nomination based on an argument he actually made in the hearing. Was Todd Blanche independent? Was he Donald Trump's personal lawyer? No, I think. Ali, what did Cornyn say? 99.3% of the time, the remarkable thing is this fund, and particularly the IRS deal, almost seems like a dare to Republicans in the Senate. It was almost like, I'm going to push my personal lawyer through to be permanent attorney general and you guys are going to have to swallow this thing that's going to get thrown in your face during the midterms. Let's see if you go for it. And the remarkable part about it is not necessarily that Cornyn and Tillis, Tillis, much less so, stood up at the 11th hour. But whether or not they're going to capitulate eventually after some presidential pressure, it just shows you the power that Trump still has within the jewel case of the Republican primary. An influence, by the way, that he doesn't seem to have in the general election. That's the pressure differential. He's at 32 to 39% in polls, but he's way up there, 80% still in the Republican base. And that puts people like Corn Untillis and John Thune in a hell of a position.
[09:21]
Nicole Wallace
Well, I mean, Glenn, to your political point, I mean, this is what's showing up in town halls. Like, this isn't just showing up in polling. This is showing up in Republican interactions with voters where they're not just mad because everything is unpopular. As has been pointed out already, a slush fund where the money goes to insurrectionists who beat up cops isn't even a question you have to put in a poll. It's deeply unpopular. They're unpopular because they're so weak. And no one is weaker now, today, right now, regardless of whether he's confirmed or not, than Todd lynch, who, after all he's done for Trump, right? Like he argues the Alvin Bragg case, he does things that Pam Bondi wouldn't do. Someday that sentence will be written in a history book and people will see what those things were, right? Indicting Jim Comey over seashells, purging the department of more career prosecutors, further upending the rule of law. And then when his own prize was like, right there within reach, Trump throws him on the hamster wheel and says, run, hamster, run. I'm not letting you put it in writing that the slush fund is dead. I think in terms of all the ritual humiliations we've covered over nine years, this one takes the cake.
[10:30]
Glenn Thrush
I would say it's, I've likened it over the years not to a ritual humiliation, but a gang initiation. Like, what are you willing to do for me in order to prove that you're loyal to me? Again, let me just emphasize, and I Think Carol made this point too. Like how little, how very, very little John Cornyn is asking for here. He's not asking for this IRS deal, which is extraordinary, which was negotiated inside a circle of lawyers who all know each other and represent Donald Trump. Plaintiff and defense side were operating generally in the same interest, according to the judge that was adjudicating the case. Right. And all, all that John Cornyn wants is something in writing to cover two points. The first point is that the IRS tax immunity thing is only retrospective and that the second point is that it not extend to a wider group of people than previously thought. It's not like he's looking to get rid of the deal, which even, even most Republicans have already told Blanche they think is entirely inappropriate and self dealing. He's asking for very, very little. And the President, you know, we'll find out. We've heard that Blanche is meeting with, with Cornyn off campus. We'll find out if they've worked out an agreement. But at the moment, Trump or quote unquote, these mythical staffers are not willing to give Cornyn this very, very, very slender victory.
[11:55]
Nicole Wallace
I mean, Andrew Riceman, I think the embarrassing thing, and I feel like vicarious embarrassment for some reason for Todd Blanche is that they won't let Todd Blanche give John Cornyn this very, very, very, very, very narrow little thing to get him confirmed. I mean, he's Trump's guy, he's Trump's Ray Donovan, and Trump won't let him give Cornyn this itty bitty little thing to get confirmed.
[12:18]
Carolyn Lennig
That's the thing I really want to foot stomp on what everyone is saying here, which is this is where we are, we are talking about crumbs. I was talking with Carol before we got on about this is the state of affairs here. Todd Blanche is somebody who was found to be vindictive by a federal judge in the Abrego Garcia case. He tried to have a criminal investigation of the Federal Reserve and Jerome Powell and was shot down. He tried to indict six members of Congress and the grand jury said no. He, in my view, obstructed the independent investigation into the murder of Alex Preddy and Renee Good. He has violated the Epstein Transparency act again, in my view, up one side and down the other. And this is all that this is being held up on is, oh, the general release of the President should be narrower when it shouldn't be existing at all, that the fund shouldn't be used to go to convicted criminals. You can use other money at the Department of Justice. To go to convicted criminals. In fact, they're doing it, but just not this big fund. I mean, this is how sort of bankrupt the Congress is right now, that this is where we are and how normalized it is that is sort of focusing on this sort of these. These real table scraps when there's such wrongdoing that's gone on.
[13:54]
Nicole Wallace
I want to show you what Blanche is on the record already saying about the fund. This is, again, his sworn testimony at the confirmation hearing.
[14:08]
John Cornyn
I believe you have said that the weaponization fund is a moot issue. Is that your position?
[14:14]
Carolyn Lennig
Yes, it is a moot issue. Meaning the. There is no weaponization fund. The weaponization fund is dead. It's not moving forward.
[14:22]
John Cornyn
Has there been a written agreement of the parties to modify the settlement fund?
[14:26]
Carolyn Lennig
No, the settlement fund's just not moving forward. There's not.
[14:29]
Nicole Wallace
There's no modification.
[14:30]
Carolyn Lennig
It's just. It never started.
[14:34]
Nicole Wallace
I mean, carolinig, it is a moment, speaking of crumbs, for us to settle into the crumbs that we have of resistance here. I mean, there was a point in the Trump story where that would have been enough, but now, I guess, because judges no longer believe Tod Blanche, neither does John Cornyn. And Cornyn, we should point out, tweeted earlier today to Trump saying Trump is mistaken if he believes concerns about the provisions in the tax lawsuit settlement are committed to me and Senator Tillis, suggesting that there are other Republicans who think it smells as well.
[15:09]
Ali Vitale
Well, Nicole, I think we know from good reporting here, but also plenty of colleagues of mine who cover the White House and the Justice Department. We know that numerous Republicans were basically jumping up and down, calling the White House, calling Trump himself in some instances, saying, wait a minute, $1.7 billion, including potentially for people who beat up cops with fire extinguishers whose violence led to the death of two officers who attacked the seed of democracy. Wait a sec. Hold up there. What's also really interesting about the decision by Blanch, which irritated Tillis and Cornyn weeks and weeks ago, was in the hearing you just played, he was asked, so can you put that in writing? And his response was, I said it. What else do you need? Well, there's a problem in the Department of Justice, which is they've entered in this agreement into the record. You can find it in what nerds like me call pacer, it's electronic system where we know what it says. Nothing is correcting it or mooting it. And so it's not so much distrusting Blanche as distrusting his claim that it's no longer in effect when. When on paper it is.
[16:39]
Nicole Wallace
There was an interesting mention from another Republican senator, Senator Cassidy Glenn, about the Cassidy Hutchinson case, which I know is something you've reported on. This is from another tweet from a Semaphore reporter. It says, cassidy says, quote, I have to make sure that he is the Attorney General who used to be the President's personal attorney, not the personal attorney who's also the attorney general. Quote, I'm concerned about lawfare going after people. Cassidy Hutchinson, for example, a grand jury, I'm told, is being empaneled, going after her. Why? Tell me that again.
[17:13]
Ali Vitale
Why?
[17:13]
Nicole Wallace
The fact that that's happening has great concern and should concern all Americans, because where does it stop? Well, I mean, as we all know, it doesn't stop at Cassidy Hutchinson. It extends to Jerome Powell and six Democratic lawmakers who told members of the military to disobey illegal orders. And on and on and on. What do you make of Cassidy's objection over lawfare, which is sort of the. I mean, that is, if the department is anything, it is in the business of retribution and lawfare.
[17:45]
Glenn Thrush
It just seems, you know, and we've reported on this and, you know, last summer, the extraordinary, the extraordinary truth social message that we think was a direct message to Pam Bondi, asking her explicitly to target people. I mean, you just don't get more direct. Right. Than that. One thing you'd say about Trump is he doesn't really beat around the Bush. I mean, the whole thing about these prosecutions, again, they are not. They're not something that the department is hiding. I think this gets though, however, to the reason why Tillis and Cornyn, in my view, will ultimately, and again, I want to make any predictions on this, but I do sense that they, they're looking for a way to say yes, Right. As opposed to a way to say no here. And the reason is that they genuinely believe that Blanche is the least terrible of all the options. And I'll duck while you throw rotten fruit at me when I say that. But I do think that that is. I am simply reporting the mindset. I think of a lot of the senators, a lot of the Republican senators who, who are convinced that Blanche himself is a moderating influence. And I think their article, number one in that argument is that Blanche dissuaded. Dissuaded Trump from going after Jerome Powell, the Fed, the former head of the Fed, and that Blanche has attempted in a relatively small.
[19:06]
Nicole Wallace
Wait, wait, Trump isn't dissuaded from going after Powell A judge doesn't even let them take the first investigative step. They quash the subpoenas. Trump's not dissuaded. They fail. They go for it. They go for the Powell investigation, and they're stopped by a judge.
[19:21]
Glenn Thrush
I am channeling their argument, but I'm just.
[19:27]
Nicole Wallace
Give them a copy of your newspaper.
[19:30]
Glenn Thrush
No, this is the argument. No, look, whether or not they're subject to a collective delusion, whether or not this is what they're telling themselves, but I think there is a general belief that what will come next will be worse. Let me tell you something else. I mean, Todd Blanche's behavior while he is auditioning for this job since Bondi got kicked out for not executing Trump's retribution agenda in April, he has definitely turned up the volume. He started to parrot Trump's election fraud, falsehoods. And I think here's an interesting question. Let's say this gets blocked and Blanche remains acting attorney general. I think it's an interesting question to ask ourselves how he will behave if he doesn't have the potential reward of being named permanent attorney general ahead of him. Will that actually create even less of a boundary or an incentive for him to stop Trump from doing what Trump wants to do?
[20:27]
Nicole Wallace
I mean, I'm not in the business of guessing if a quacking duck is going to quack louder or more softly, a duck's a duck. So we think we can surmise that he'll keep quacking. No one goes anywhere. I want to bring Andrew in on that question because that is the delusion that Republicans seem to have wrapped themselves in. But the notion of a moderating force is how we ended up with a head of intelligence. You can't say who won the 2020 election. Also ahead for us, the world is watching all of this, and they were watching yesterday. The absolute disgrace of a performance by a group of Senate Republicans yesterday attacking Dr. Anthony Fauci. The surprising new voices speaking out against them and against this witch hunt of a career scientist and public health official. Someone comparing Republicans to the time of Joseph McCarthy. Plus leaving Americans more vulnerable than they have been in a generation. We'll look at the administration's dangerous dismantling of terrorism protections put in place after 9, 11 and later, how Democrats are mobilizing voters to stand up against a president who shows day after day his singular focus is on enriching himself in office. Senator Cory Booker joins us on that office, those stories and much more when Deadline White House continues after a quick break. Don't go anywhere. Watch disclosure day at home now with exclusive bonus features. If you found out we weren't alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? Well, now the truth belongs to 7 billion people in an original event film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by David Koepp, starring Emily Blunt, Josh o', Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson and Colman Domingo. Find Disclosure Day on major digital platforms now with no subscription required. Also in theaters.
[22:19]
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[22:36]
Glenn Thrush
I just hope that these two senators,
[22:38]
Carolyn Lennig
and particularly Senator Cornyn, don't settle for too little. The president has been able to engage
[22:44]
Glenn Thrush
in so much over the top corruption because the Senate and the House are
[22:48]
John Cornyn
not acting as a check on his power.
[22:51]
Glenn Thrush
The Congress is in a way back to doing its institutional job in rejecting purely unqualified people or people who should be disqualified for abusing the positions they already have. So it's an important statement that Congress
[23:05]
Nicole Wallace
is not willing to roll over for
[23:07]
Glenn Thrush
this president on everything.
[23:11]
Nicole Wallace
We're back with Glenn, Andrew and Carol. Andrew, I want to pull you into the conversation I was having with Glenn at the end of the last block. I mean, the fact that this is what we're talking about and I think under truth serum, every last one of us believes that Todd Blanche will ultimately be confirmed by Republicans and that Tillis and Corey will find a way to get to yes, as all the reporting suggests they're trying to do. But this isn't just about the unthinkable thing of creating a slush fund to hand out cash to violent insurrectionists who were convicted by juries of their peers and pleaded guilty, admitted to the crimes that they were charged with, for the most part, of beating up cops and storming the Capitol and defecating inside the United States Capitol, those are the things that are going to be paid for after being pardoned for doing those criminal acts. This is also Republicans signing on to everything else. And I think it's a disservice to focus in on this one thing. This is Republicans saying the First Amendment and all the stuff that got us so mad at Twitter is only when our side's voices are restrained or the brakes are put on them or they're censored. But when five New York Times journalists are subpoenaed and asked to go before a grand jury to give up their sources and we don't care, we're going to go ahead and confirm the guy that signed off on that. When someone is indicted. And even if all this young Republican conservative legal talent flees the Department of Justice because they know how corrupt the indictment of Jim Comey is, or the investigation of Jerome Powell is, or the effort to indict six lawmakers is, we're going to look the other way about that. We don't care about what happens inside the department. Shame on them. And shame on us for focusing on the Microsoft when the macro is just as appalling.
[24:57]
Carolyn Lennig
This is a Congress that passed the Epstein Transparency act and now doesn't have the backbone to actually stand by their own law and say until you comply with it, we are not confirming the head of the Justice Department who is flouting the law we passed. That is where we are. And to the argument of the president could nominate someone worse, that's not a, that's not the standard for confirmation that I could think of somebody worse. And traditionally the way this works is you put somebody up who is not confirmed, that sends the message to, as you know, it sends the message that you pick somebody who is more moderate who is going to be confirmable. It is not, oh, well, now I'm going to send you somebody worse. Because guess what the Senate can do at that point? They can still say no. Oh, you send somebody worse, it's still no. And so again, this really goes to the theme that we've all been focusing on, which is that we are focusing on such crumbs that this is the normalization of where we are is so striking. And remember, what we are seeing now from Todd Blanche is him at his best because he wants something. And just remember the way that we saw Pam Bondi and Kash Patel behave as soon as they were confirmed. Well, that's the Act 2 that we will see from Todd Blanche. This is him where there is at least some leverage on his performance.
[26:44]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah, I mean, and Andrew, it's a farce that no one has asked any questions about phone records. I mean, again, Republicans used to care about that. You know, if you read the filings, the legal documents which are now available from the. I mean, they were listening to and scooping up phone records from journalists and their parents. Imagine if that was Sean Hannity's phone record and his family members or his kids or his partner or his spouse or I mean, the inability to do any. And I know we're in post fact, I know we're in post functional three branches of government. So, you know, spare me my civics aches. And pains here, but the notion that he's going through and no one has asked any questions about whose records they're scooping up and whether they'll stop subpoenaing journalists records after a story's written that they don't like. And I mean, the notion that they vetted him at all seems like the other part of the farce.
[27:41]
Carolyn Lennig
Yeah. So let me just focus for a second on the New York Times story so peoplejust so people understand what Todd Blanche has done here. There is a court appearance where the federal judge in New York says, let me just understand. You are admitting that you erroneously subpoenaed the mother of journalists. You're admitting that you erroneously subpoenaed the spouses of journalists. You are admitting that you did not read the leading case on point and that you in fact are in violation of the law because you didn't actually know the law in this circuit. And now you're trying to sort of backfill because you actually hadn't read it. And all of this, it went on and on and on. It just kept on getting worse and worse. And, and when that was over, the Department of Justice, led by Todd Blanche, issues a statement that says that the judge is out of control and attacks the judge after a performance by the Department of Justice that would have any normal prosecutor curled up in a fetal position in their bedroom not wanting to see the light of day. It was so appalling how that is under Todd Blanche's Department of Justice.
[29:06]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah. I mean, from the sort of comically incompetent to the tragically dangerous carolinic threats against judges are they're not even at an all time high because they've never been like this. So I don't want to suggest they're up and then they go down and they go back up. There are more threats against judges, including judges appointed by plenty of Republican presidents, including and up to Donald Trump in his first term, who are in some instances just privately doing different things to protect their security and that of their family. And in other instances, posting threats coming from the general counsel of the Department of Homeland Security.
[29:41]
Ali Vitale
Oh, I'm so glad you brought that up, Nicole. It is a little bit challenging for me. I don't want to name the judges who I know whose lives and whose children's lives have been threatened because I don't want to speak more violence into the atmosphere for them. But it's really like heartbreaking to watch people that, you know, I don't have any personal stake in their positions or their opinions. But they are public servants who could have made a lot of money working in a private law firm on the white collar defense side. And instead they chose to take on these cases, follow the law. And especially in the U.S. district court in D.C. so many of them have had their lives and their family members lives, their children's lives threatened. And now that is the number one thing they're dealing with while they're getting emergency motions from various plaintiffs saying the government is wronging me, is wronging this group of immigrants is violating the law here. And we ask that you remedy this. We ask that you rule on these decisions and those judges continue to take those cases. And hats off to them for facing this horrible thing with this stick in their teeth.
[31:01]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah. And Todd Blanche chief among them in terms of smearing judges who don't rule in his way. Glenn Thrash, Andrew Weisman. Caroline, thank you so much for starting us off on this day. After the break, the new voices who have had enough, enough of the witch hunt, enough of the denialism of fact, facts that are clear in front of all of our eyes. Has today's Republican led Congress become more like the congress of the McCarthy era? We'll talk about that next. You better eat your Wheaties today because there's a lot of news to cover. Money time for the business. All eyes on the new Fed chair. The economic fallout from the war is a temporary power. The president is now a major crypto industry operator. Is this White House for sale?
[31:47]
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Politics?
[31:48]
Nicole Wallace
Is there an energy to respond to this aggressive gerrymandering? It has never been more important to be informed and engaged.
[31:54]
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[32:03]
Glenn Thrush
watching
[32:04]
MS Now Announcer
Anthony Fauci before a congressional hearing. Taking the Fifth Amendment is just one of the most heartbreaking things I have seen in government in my lifetime. They want to prosecute him, they want to convict him and they want to throw him in prison. That's the point of this hearing. There is no other point of this hearing. We are in a Senator Joseph McCarthy climate where there is such fear that people have and legitimate fear that they'll end up in prison for what they say. We are in a dark period of America.
[32:51]
Nicole Wallace
Sometimes it takes someone from outside of the immediate bubble to speak truth. That pops that bubble. That was the founder of tmz, Harvey Levin. On the shameful display by Senate Republicans yesterday. Just a small fraction of the overwhelming backlash Republicans received as Donald Trump and his allies try to do to Anthony Fauci what they've already done to Jim Comey. Tish James, John Brennan and other perceived political enemies of Donald Trump. They're weaponizing the government and as Harvey Levin says, they're trying to create a predicate for criminal prosecution of Anthony Fauci for simply doing his job. Former President Joe Biden went out of his way in the final days of his presidency to try to protect Fauci, issuing him a blanket pardon. Senate Republicans, led by Rand Paul, who released excerpts of Fauci's personal diary in advance of the hearing, dragged in front of the Senate Homeland Security Committee in an attempt to get Fauci to perjure himself and get around that pardon. Dr. Fauci refused to take the bait. He pleaded the fifth for the duration of the hearing, which Senate Republicans attempted to twist into some kind of admission of guilt. If pleading the Fifth is an admission of guilt, then someone should knock on Donald Trump's door. He invoked it more than 450 times. Rand Paul ejected Dr. Fauci's lawyer for attempting to answer our question and ended the hearing vowing to vote to hold Fauci in contempt of Congress. Joining our coverage is former deputy national security adviser President Obama, now co host of Pod Save the World, our contributor Ben Rhodes. Also joining us, former senior advisor to President Biden, Vice President Harris, former mayor of New Orleans, Mitch Landrieu is here. He's now the co chair of American Bridge, 21st century. Mitch, I'll start with you. I'm increasingly aware, I guess I'm always aware of the fact that the world is watching, that Americans pay attention to matters close to home. But around the world, people in a lot of instances pay closer attention than we do. And this is surely one of those stories on the front pages of a lot of newspapers around the country, a scientist who was so revered by George W. Bush and President Obama and President Clinton, a scientist who even Harvey Levin talked about his history of saving lives at the beginning of the AIDS epidemic. Let me play some of that for you, too. This is more Harvey Levin.
[35:27]
MS Now Announcer
Anthony Fauci, over a period of decades, has been an amazing public servant. In the 80s, I had many friends who died of AIDS, a horrible, painful death. And I had friends who lived because of Anthony Fauci, because he was willing to look at experimental drugs in a different way than they had looked at them before. And that really resulted in lives saved. And he has done so many other things in his career to thwart epidemics, to save lives, not just in the United States, but all over the world.
[36:23]
Nicole Wallace
Mitch, it says something sad when the defense of Anthony Fauci doesn't come from Washington, that it comes from the founder of tmz.
[36:32]
Mitch Landrieu
First of all, I agree with Barbara Levitt. I think Anthony Fauci is one of the great doctors of my time. For those of us that remember the AIDS crisis and had friends die from that, the work that Dr. Fauci did back then and the work that he continued throughout his career has just been exemplary. I think he's an American hero. Just to remind people, over a million people died in the United States from COVID and as I recall, I think Donald Trump was president at the time. I would also just like to point out that Senator Rand Paul is an eye doctor. He's not an infectious disease specialist. And Anthony Fauci is. That hearing yesterday was a travesty of justice. It was an embarrassment to the United States of America and to the American people. They should be ashamed of themselves for taking him through that. What they should have had a hearing about was how the nation can better prepare for the next pandemic that's coming so that we don't lose that many American lives. And I think American people watched that yesterday and concluded that these people are not only banal, but they actually have completely lost focus on what the American
[37:42]
Glenn Thrush
people want and what they want to
[37:44]
Mitch Landrieu
keep them safe and their kids safe in the future.
[37:49]
Nicole Wallace
Ben Rhodes, your thoughts?
[37:52]
Ben Rhodes
I want to pick up on something Mitch said, because, look, we can and should defend Dr. Fauci against these attacks, But Donald Trump was President United States this entire time period that they're focused on. Nicole, you've rightly pointed out repeatedly that all of his conspiracies about the 2020 election cover a time period when he was in charge of the United States government during that electoral period. And so there's just something truly absurd about the fact that Donald Trump as President United States is totally unaccountable for anything that they think went wrong with the COVID response. We're going to put everything on this one person, Dr. Fauci, because he kind of represents the, I don't know, the scientific establishment or something, when the reality is, if they're mad about the origins of COVID and Donald Trump is in charge of the entire US Intelligence community at that time. Right. He could have put out assessments. Donald Trump was in charge of Project Warp Speed to develop the vaccine. And so all these conspiracy theories and all these allegations that they level at Fauci. Well, the person in charge of all that was Donald Trump. And so just speaks to the absurdity of this. Nicole, they're not speaking to The American people, they're speaking to like the third of the American population that is kind of locked in a right wing media ecosystem bubble where the whole point is to not focus on the things that people care about in their lives, like the cost of living, like the war in Iran that has no end in sight. Like an economy that is increasingly for a very small number of rich people at the top. They just have to focus on whoever the villain of the week is to fill up the airtime and generate a lot of content. I mean, these are not people going to legislate or conduct oversight. They're people going to have viral clips in some deep recess of the right wing media ecosystem with the total intellectual and logical incoherence of the fact that they're yelling about a government response that was led by not Anthony Fauci, but Donald Trump, their cult leader. You know, and it's totally ridiculous. But the reason we have to take it seriously is that there are real consequences. They're trying to destroy people's lives and they're trying to criminalize people they don't like just for the views that they've taken. And that's why I think we do have to take it seriously.
[40:19]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah. I mean, Ben, he is telling his base we don't believe it because we have access to facts and reality. Trump is telling his base that only on his watch elections were corrupted while President Obama was in office and President Biden was in office. They were fine. And only on his watch, Anthony Fauci ran Amok all the 11, I don't know how many years. He had decades of service before that working for presidents of both parties. And all those previous presidents were able to keep Fauci focused on the mission. Some of them either did history altering things. He launched pepfar with George W. Bush, my old boss, but that only on Trump's watch, Anthony Fauci ran him up. I mean, I think, Ben, you raise a good point. Why didn't Trump fire him?
[41:04]
Ben Rhodes
Yeah, exactly. Trump was the one putting him on television. Trump was the one taking him to the White House briefing room. Right. Trump was the one signing off on they obsess over like a diary entry about Fauci supporting lockdowns as if Donald Trump had nothing to do with. With lockdowns are happening in the United States while he was president, United States. These are all decisions that he made or oversaw and it's totally absurd. And yes, the thing about Dr. Fauci, it does matter that you have a multi decade record. I mean, I was there in the obama years. Absent Dr. Fauci, I don't know how many more people could have died from the Ebola epidemic in Africa that got stomped out in part because of the expertise of Dr. Fauci. And there's so many stories like that. What I worry about, to take another angle here, Nicole, is this disincentivizes people from going into public service. If you want the best people to become the leaders of the CDC or the NIH or to go into the foreign service or the message that those Republicans are sending is we may come and try to destroy your life if you are an effective public servant, who rises to the top of these agencies. And I think that's a big problem that doesn't get enough attention. Who wants to go into politics, who wants to go into federal service when this is the treatment you get from people who are supposed to be making the government work better?
[42:24]
Nicole Wallace
All right, who wants to be a judge? Who wants to do any of these jobs? All right, no one's going anywhere. We'll bring Mitch back in on the other side. All three of us will be right back. We're back with Ben and Mitch. So, Mitch, I mean to. To pick up on Ben's point. What they are careening into the midterms with are election lies. Covid lies. Lies about how many people have lost their lives, have been injured in the war in Iran, and describing economic despair as, quote, a hoax created by Democrats. That's how Donald Trump describes the affordability crisis. Your plan, your thoughts?
[43:04]
Mitch Landrieu
Well, I've traveled around the country in the last 18 months, been in 21 different states, and talked to more people than count. People are focused on cost. They live in paycheck to paycheck. They're underneath it. They feel like they're incredibly burdened in the president. And this Congress wants to talk about everything except for that. The American people want them to focus on getting out of foreign wars and lowering their costs. And the president has failed spectacularly in that regard. And I believe that they're going to pay a very heavy price for it in the midterms.
[43:33]
Nicole Wallace
What are you picking up the most match out there? Is it. Is it exasperation at the cost of things, or is it exasperation that Trump won't focus on the thing that hurts them?
[43:43]
Mitch Landrieu
Well, they think he's definitely lost focus and he's betrayed them. People voted for him for two reasons, to stay out of major wars and to lower their cost. And they think he's done the exact opposite in both of those areas. People are really struggling out there, delivered paycheck to paycheck. They're having to choose between paying for health care and putting gas in their car. And they feel like he is not focused on their work. And of course, he's trying to distract in every which way that he can from that.
[44:08]
Nicole Wallace
Yeah, he sure is. Just build another arch. Mitch, thank you for joining us today. Ben sticks around a little bit longer after the break. Zero in 18. Trump's Justice Department just suffered its 18th defeat in its sweeping campaign to force states to disclose sensitive data about American voters. You and me, I'll tell you about it next. Donald Trump's Justice Department, legally at least, just keeps losing in its fight for full unconstitutional access to sensitive voting records nationwide. Yesterday, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by DOJ seeking unredacted personal information about the voters of New Jersey, plainly stating that it's, quote, not a record or paper that the state must produce to the United States, end quote. And in a telling line about the weakness of DOJ's argument and recent attempts to bolster its case, the judge writes this, quote, whether the DOJ is acting in good faith is not relevant to this court's analysis and has no bearing on whether plaintiff is entitled to the information it seeks in the opinion. The judge also points out that this is now the 18th consecutive loss for DOJ across the country in similar cases nationwide. We'll stay on top of that after the break. A new report details how Trump's massive cuts to the federal government has left more Americans vulnerable than in decades to terror threats. We'll get to that when Billing White House continues after a quick break. Watch Disclosure Day at home now with exclusive bonus features. If you found out we weren't alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? Well, now the truth belongs to 7 billion people in an original event film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by David Koepp, starring Emily Blunt, Josh o', Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson and Colman Domingo. Find Disclosure Day on major digital platforms now with no subscription required. Also in theaters.