Epstein survivors call on Tillis, Cornyn to block Blanche nomination

A group of women victimized by Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring urged Republican Sens. Thom Tillis and John Cornyn to vote against Todd Blanche’s nomination to serve as attorney general.

Jess Michaels, an Epstein victim and an advocate for sexual assault survivors, posted a letter on social media addressed to the two lawmakers and signed by 26 women victimized by Epstein.

The letter complained that Mr. Blanche, while overseeing the release of the Epstein files, did not ensure the names of all victims were redacted. It also accused Mr. Blanche of showing “no remorse” for the exposure of victims’ names and images.

“Both of you have records of standing with survivors of human trafficking and sexual assault. A vote to confirm Todd Blanche would be a vote against those survivors,” the letter said.

Neither Mr. Tillis, of North Carolina, nor Mr. Cornyn, of Texas, has committed to voting in favor of advancing Mr. Blanche’s nomination out of the Judiciary Committee.

Mr. Blanche is currently serving as acting attorney general.

Both lawmakers have become estranged from President Trump, complicating Mr. Blanche’s nomination.

Mr. Cornyn was spurned in the Texas primary by Mr. Trump, who endorsed GOP opponent Ken Paxton and helped propel him to victory.

Mr. Tillis is not running for reelection and has clashed with Mr. Trump throughout his final year in office.

Mr. Tillis said he leaned toward voting for Mr. Blanche but, he told CNN, he has concerns about “a lack of independence” at the Justice Department.

Mr. Cornyn is talking with the White House about the president’s settlement agreement with the IRS involving the illegal release of his tax returns. The senator wants assurances that the $1.776 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund now abandoned by the Justice Department cannot be revived.

The committee is slated to vote on Mr. Blanche’s nomination on July 30. Without the backing of Mr. Tillis and Mr. Cornyn, the nomination would likely stall.

Epstein’s victims say Mr. Blanche should be rejected based on his response to their demands for full accountability from those who participated in the sex trafficking.

Mr. Blanche met with survivors at the urging of Mr. Tillis, but the letter from the survivors claimed the meeting “was a box-checking exercise arranged only after his confirmation was put at risk.”

The letter also complained that more than 1,000 women and girls were abused by Epstein, yet the Justice Department has not prosecuted anyone other than Epstein and his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell.

Epstein committed suicide in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 while awaiting prosecution on sex trafficking charges. Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence for helping him carry out the crimes.

Mr. Blanche was the point man in the Justice Department’s effort to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which required the release of all the files, with redactions limited to victims.

Some identifying information still made it in, and Mr. Blanche took the blame during his confirmation hearing on Wednesday.

“I take responsibility,” he said.

Nearly 3 million pages of the Epstein files have been released in response to court orders and the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

Mr. Blanche said the department erred in redactions 1% of the time and that errors were corrected as soon as they were brought to the department’s attention.

“For four years, there wasn’t a peep about Jeffrey Epstein. The Biden administration did nothing to be transparent about Jeffrey Epstein. We have been extraordinarily transparent,” Mr. Blanche said.

Stephen Dinan contributed to this report.