A key Republican senator, Thom Tillis, has stated that Todd Blanche, the nominee for attorney general, needs to meet with the victims of Jeffrey Epstein before he will consider supporting Blanche’s nomination.

Background

Blanche fielded hours of questions from the Senate panel, acknowledging some errors in the department’s vetting of the Epstein files, but defending his handling of the case. Epstein survivors have urged the Senate to reject Blanche’s nomination, citing concerns over his handling of the case.

A group of Epstein survivors testified against Blanche, with one victim, Dani Bensky, sharing her story. The Justice Department has agreed to arrange a meeting between Blanche and the survivors within the next two weeks.

Republican Senators’ Stance

Senators Tillis and John Cornyn, both Republicans, have expressed concerns over Blanche’s nomination. Cornyn recently lost the Republican primary in his state, while Tillis announced last year that he would not seek reelection. Both senators have been critical of the Justice Department’s earlier proposal of a nearly $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund, which Blanche has said is “dead”.

Cornyn believes the fund can still be revived, while Tillis wants to see a “work product” that ensures it won’t come up again. The Epstein survivors have been pushing for a meeting with Blanche for months and have requested meetings with Republican senators who have yet to make up their minds on supporting Blanche.

Original reporting: KEYT (Ventura/Santa Barbara) — read the source article.