Once More Cassidy Had the Deciding Vote. Once More He Folded.

On the early morning of Saturday, the Senate made a decision to confirm Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to his official role. This came after Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.) publicly endorsed the former personal lawyer of President Donald Trump the previous day. Blanche was confirmed with a narrow 50-49 vote, with all Republicans, except for Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), supporting him.

Cassidy had initially withheld his approval due to concerns about Blanche's work on Trump's political enemies, a $1.8 billion anti-weaponization slush fund, and an exemption from IRS audits. However, he eventually changed his stance, knowing that his vote was decisive. In his remarks on the Senate floor, Cassidy raised reasonable points about why Blanche should not be confirmed, including the funding of the anti-weaponization slush fund, exempting the president from IRS audits, and bringing suits against political enemies.

Despite losing his reelection bid, Cassidy continued to make perplexing arguments that Blanche had made commitments to change, and his conversations with Blanche had convinced him that Blanche would improve. The Trump administration's focus on crime and human and drug trafficking has resulted in increased domestic and foreign militarization, while attacks on widespread fraud have cut essential social programs like Medicare and Medicaid.

Cassidy's previous decisions to support controversial or unqualified candidates, such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s nomination as health secretary and Erica Schwartz for CDC director, suggest a pattern of backing down from his principled opposition. Confirming Blanche would give more power to a Trump loyalist and not address concerns about weaponization, as Cassidy and many Democratic colleagues have mentioned.

Blanche expressed gratitude to Trump, the Senate, and Justice Department staff, while Trump threatened Murkowski, one of the two Republican dissenters on the confirmation vote, calling her a "traitor" and comparing her to Merrick Garland, who personally signed off on the Mar-a-Lago raid search warrant.