STOPPING THE STEAL?

Republican Rebel Caves to Trump in Midnight Spine Collapse

The dramatic standoff over the president’s attorney general pick ended with a whimper.

A rebel Republican senator blocking Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general is backing down after reaching an agreement for the official termination of the president’s $1.8 billion Jan. 6 slush fund.

Sen. John Cornyn is one of two Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee who have been blocking the nomination of Trump’s former personal attorney, Todd Blanche, to run the Department of Justice.

Blanche, the acting attorney general, announced in an X post late Sunday night that the Anti-Weaponization Fund—designed to compensate Trump allies and even participants in the 2021 Capitol riots—had been “rescinded.”

In response, a spokesperson for Cornyn told Punchbowl News the Texas senator had reached an agreement with the DOJ “permanently terminating” the slush fund and clarifying the scope of a wider deal between the IRS and Trump.

After replacing the fired Pam Bondi in April, Blanche is desperate to hang on to the AG job, but still needs the vote of another rogue Republican, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who has called the anti-weaponization fund Trump’s “payout pot for punks.”

Cornyn, 74, was considered a Trump loyalist in the Senate but lost a primary battle in May to Ken Paxton, the MAGA-friendly Texas attorney general who won Trump’s endorsement. Cornyn exacted revenge with his short-lived battle to block Blanche.

While Blanche announced at a hearing in June that the Justice Department would not move forward with the fund, Cornyn and Tillis, who are both members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, wanted to see the promise in writing, particularly as Trump has repeatedly threatened to revive the divisive fund.

“My team and I have met with committee members and Senators over the past several weeks and addressed any concerns or outstanding questions,” Blanche wrote on X in a 11.09 p.m. post.

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“We have enjoyed good faith discussions, and as a result issue the following order and update with regard to the May IRS settlement. The Department always welcomes and appreciates productive engagement with all members of Congress.”

His post included a signed order that read, “The Attorney General’s May 18, 2026 Order establishing the Anti-Weaponization Fund (‘Fund’) is rescinded and shall have nor force or effect.”

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“This order establishes, beyond any doubt, that there is no fund,” the order read.

The fund was part of an agreement that arose from a lawsuit Trump filed against the IRS over the leak of his tax returns to the media, which also shielded the Trump family from tax audits. The agreement was reached against the advice of Trump’s own top IRS attorney.

Blanche’s post highlighted two key changes to the deal the Justice Department negotiated in May to end Trump’s IRS case.

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One alteration terminated the slush fund for Trump allies and supporters who claim to be victims of politicized prosecutions; the other involved a separate part of the deal that offered Trump and his sons protections from past tax claims.

Blanche’s tweaked documents point out that protection for Trump and his family would only apply retroactively and they would not be shielded from future audits.

Supporters of the fund nevertheless shrugged off the announcement, arguing that the concessions for which Cornyn retreated could be reversed. “Can be undone after Tuesday,” Mike Howell, a Republican lawyer and early supporter of the fund, wrote in response to Blanche’s announcement. “The Anti-Weaponization Fund is great.”

Prior to Blanche’s late-night post, Trump was asked about the Anti-Weaponization Fund on Sunday during a press gaggle on Air Force One on his way back to the White House from a day golfing.

“People were hurt so badly,” Trump said of the people his fund was designed for. “Twenty-two suicides. They were destroyed. Their families were destroyed...and this would be a reimbursement for the pain that they suffered. A lot of people like it.”

“If they don’t approve Todd, I’ll put it back on the table. A lot of people like it. A lot of big supporters of Trump like it,” he added.

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He also backed Blanche, saying, “You’re not gonna find a better person. And everybody agrees.”

The late-night post arrives two days before the Senate Judiciary Committee is set to vote on Blanche’s nomination as permanent attorney general.

Blanche took over as attorney general after Trump sacked his boss, has been in his role after Trump sacked his boss, Pam Bondi, in April after her botched handling of the release of the Jeffrey Epstein case files. Trump nominated him as her permanent replacement in June

The late-night deal follows Trump repeatedly attacking Cornyn last week, and expressing his regret that his slush fund had been withdrawn.

Tillis had posted a warning on X on Saturday, saying, “President Trump clearly intends to resurrect the payout pot for punks either by inappropriately establishing another bogus fund or pushing Congress to vote for a bill that the majority of Republicans in the Senate would be against.”

He added, “It’s unfortunate that Todd Blanche, who I consider qualified for the job, will not be confirmed because of this reversal. Hopefully, we can resolve this by Tuesday.”

Cornyn and Tillis are both departing Congress in January 2027. If either voted against Blanche, it would have stopped his nomination at the committee stage.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.

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