WASHINGTON (AP) — A planned vote to move forward with Todd Blanche's nomination for attorney general appeared in doubt Wednesday as a key Republican senator demanded more assurances from the Justice Department about the settlement of President Donald Trump's lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service.
GOP Sen. John Cornyn, a crucial swing vote, called off a scheduled Wednesday meeting with Blanche, who has been serving as acting attorney general since Pam Bondi's firing in April. Cornyn told reporters that the Justice Department has not adequately addressed in writing his concerns about the settlement that afforded Trump and members of his family protection from tax audits.
The Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a vote for Thursday to advance Blanche's nomination to the full Senate, but could be delayed if there's no resolution. Another Republican on the committee, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, has backed Cornyn's position, and just one Republican holdout could sink Blanche's prospects.
“They know what they need to do but they simply refuse to do it," Cornyn, who lost the Republican primary in May, said of the Justice Department.
At the center of the fight is the settlement of Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS that included a deal to drop tax claims against the president and a now-scrapped plan to create a $1.776 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” to compensate people who believe they were wronged by the Justice Department. The Justice Department said in June that it was no longer moving forward with the “Anti-Weaponization Fund" amid bipartisan outrage but officials have said the audit immunity agreement remains in place.
Some lawmakers have raised concerns that the fund could be resurrected absent a commitment in writing from the Trump administration that it is dead, especially since Trump has expressed continued support for the idea. Blanche had previously resisted requests for a formal written retraction, though he told senators at his confirmation hearing earlier this month that the administration would be willing to help craft legislation to bar the creation of the fund.
Cornyn has also demanded clarification from the Justice Department on the scope of the tax immunity deal. Blanche has said the deal covers any existing audits but does not protect the president from examination of future tax filings.
“We're been trying to help them get to a conclusion here and they won't let us. It's befuddling to me,” Cornyn said.
A person familiar with the matter said the Justice Department provided Cornyn’s office with a written proposal seeking to address his concerns around the audit immunity agreement and the fund. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk about sensitive discussions surrounding Blanche’s confirmation.
Associated Press reporter Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington contributed to this report.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Sen. Lindsey Graham returned for the last time Wednesday to South Carolina, where powerful friends remembered him as someone who never stopped working for the state he loved.
After Graham was eulogized Tuesday in the nation's capital as an indefatigable dealmaker by the president, vice president and others, mourners in Columbia recalled the son of pool hall owners who “was born with a plastic fork in his mouth,” as former Rep. Trey Gowdy put it.
Graham seemed to know every small-town mayor and police chief and the location of every Chick-fil-A across South Carolina. He made sure Republicans had money to run in legislative and local elections across the state.
“Lindsey Graham understood the hopes and dreams and needs of his state and delivered every time,” said Republican Gov, Henry McMaster, who ended his remarks by telling Graham he loved him.
Graham died suddenly on July 11 at his home in Washington, likely of an aortic tear, according to preliminary findings. He had just returned from a whirlwind trip to a NATO summit in Turkey, where he celebrated his 71st birthday, and a visit to Ukraine as he negotiated punishing sanctions against Russia. Senators voted late Tuesday to advance the package as a final gesture for their colleague.
Wednesday's funeral was at First Baptist, the giant downtown church where his predecessor Republican Sen. Strom Thurmond was honored 23 years ago.
One of Graham's many friends in Congress, Gowdy described how Graham rose to power through humor, genuine caring for all people and a relentless work ethic. He joked the governor should change the name of the state capital of Columbia to honor Graham, even though his friend wouldn't want it.
“It wasn't the trapping of office he cared about. It was the work,” Gowdy said.
Graham's body was first brought to the South Carolina Statehouse, where he started his political career in 1993. It paused in front of about a dozen law enforcement officers and four military jets flew over. A horse-drawn caisson then carried his casket to the church, where his family followed military pallbearers carrying it inside. A 130-member choir sang hymns.
Hundreds of movers in South Carolina politics gathered. Both nominees for governor — Republican Attorney General Alan Wilson and Democratic state Rep. Jermaine Johnson — came, along with longtime Republican politicians like former House Speaker and Ambassador to Canada David Wilkins and U.S. Rep. Henry Brown, who served 10 years before leaving in 2011.
Republicans Gov. Henry McMaster, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott and former U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy were expected to speak. Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, the only remaining member of the South Carolina delegation there when Graham arrived in Washington in 1995, will read Scripture.
Graham's burial Wednesday near his home in Pickens County was planned as a private ceremony.
On Tuesday, Graham’s flag-draped casket was at the U.S. Capitol, where the Republican spent more than 30 years talking and laughing and badgering his colleagues into action.
President Donald Trump then joined foreign leaders at the Washington National Cathedral, a testament to Graham’s stature on the global stage.
Trump called Graham “a giant of the United States Senate, a true American original who left us much too soon.”
Graham's death has created opportunities for change in South Carolina. Graham had already won the Republican nomination as he ran for a fifth term. McMaster named his younger sister Darline to hold his seat until January. Darline Graham then surprised many by deciding to run for the full six-year term herself.
State law has Republicans holding a special primary in two weeks to decide the new nominee. Eight others are competing, including former Gov. Mark Sanford and U.S. Reps. Ralph Norman and Russell Fry. Three candidates who paid the filing fee were kicked off the ballot because they didn't meet new party requirements for voting in the Republican primary.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster speaks during the funeral service for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., at First Baptist Church in Columbia, S.C., Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham's casket on a horse-drawn caisson arrives at First Baptist Church in Columbia, S.C., on Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed)
The casket of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., sits at the front of First Baptist Church in Columbia, S.C., during a funeral service, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
The casket of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is escorted into First Baptist Church in Columbia, S.C., for a funeral service Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Meg Kinnard)
The flag-draped casket of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is carried on a horse-drawn caisson to his funeral at First Baptist Church in Columbia, S.C., on Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins).
The casket of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is escorted to First Baptist Church in Columbia, S.C., for a funeral service, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
The casket of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is carried into First Baptist Church in Columbia, S.C., for a funeral service, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., left, who is running to fill the seat of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., greets an attendee before the late Sen. Graham's funeral at First Baptist Church in Columbia, S.C., Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
A guest looks at the program during the service for Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
An Armed Forces Body Bearer Team places the flag-draped casket of Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
Sen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., cries during the funeral of her brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., at the Washington National Cathedral, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump speaks at the funeral of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., at the Washington National Cathedral, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)
President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other guests, attend the funeral of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Tuesday July 28, 2026, at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
