WASHINGTON: The US Senate confirmed President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer Todd Blanche as attorney general early on Saturday after Republican lawmakers shrugged off Democratic concerns over politicisation of the Department of Justice. Blanche, who has already been serving as the top US law enforcement officer in an acting capacity, represented Trump as his private attorney in several criminal trials before entering government.
The Senate, which Republicans narrowly control, confirmed him by 50 votes to 49. Republican senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski joined the Democrats in voting no, underlining the political sensitivity over the nomination.
Blanche said he was "deeply honoured by the trust and confidence President Trump has placed in me to lead the Department of Justice." "I am grateful to the Senate for staying late to complete this process. To the dedicated public servants of the Department of Justice, thank you for your work each day to uphold the law and keep our country safe," Blanche wrote on X.
Trump, who has upended US political norms by seeking to bring nominally independent government agencies under his increasingly direct control, calls Blanche a "star." Democrats opposed Blanche from the beginning, accusing Trump of turning the Department of Justice into a political weapon. — AFP
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