President-elect Donald Trump is seriously considering naming his lead attorney Todd Blanche to serve as the next deputy attorney general, the second-highest position in the Justice Department, according to two people familiar with his thinking.
Blanche has represented Trump for the last 18 months and defended him during his criminal hush money trial in Manhattan earlier this year. He has grown close to the president-elect in that time period and is often seen with Trump in Palm Beach and when he travels. Because of his proximity and Trump’s trust in him, it was widely expected inside Trump’s inner circle that if he won, Blanche would likely follow him into the federal government.
One person close to the matter cautioned that no final decisions have been made.
If he is nominated, Blanche would need to be confirmed by the Senate before helping run the department that is one of the most prioritized by Trump. On Wednesday, Trump announced that he’d selected Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz as his pick for attorney general, likely setting off a tough confirmation battle even in the Republican-held Senate.
During his first term in office, Trump selected Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions to run the Justice Department, but their relationship quickly soured over special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. At the time, Trump had relied on Sessions when naming his deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein. Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller, later resigned after a turbulent tenure.
Trump is prioritizing loyalty in his selections this time around.
Blanche is a former federal prosecutor in the Southern District of New York who later worked as a partner at a top white-collar defense firm before he left to represent Trump.
Recently, the FBI informed Blanche that his cellphone had been tapped by Chinese hackers as part of a wide-ranging operation targeting top Republicans and Democrats in US politics that has been underway for months. Hackers were able to obtain some voice recordings and text messages from his phone, but that none of the information was related to Trump, CNN previously reported.