Todd Blanche, nominee for attorney general, and Jay Clayton, nominee to lead the US Intelligence community, faced intense scrutiny from Senate committees on Wednesday. The nominees were questioned on their ability to lead their respective departments without political interference from President Donald Trump.

Blanche’s Hearing

Blanche, who previously served as Trump’s personal attorney, was asked about his role in the Justice Department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. He defended the department’s actions, stating that while redaction issues existed, they were corrected, and mistakes were addressed after release.

Blanche also faced questions about the anti-weaponization fund, which some conservatives have criticized as a potential means to finance allies of the president. He insisted that the fund is dead and that the tax addendum, which is still in effect, only binds the IRS and Treasury from investigating the president for potential crimes.

Clayton’s Hearing

Clayton, currently the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, was questioned about his views on the 2020 election. He responded that President Joe Biden was certified as the winner, but avoided directly answering whether Biden had won the election.

Clayton also faced questions about his decision to issue subpoenas to New York Times reporters over an article about the president’s use of a jet from the Qatari government as Air Force One. He stated that he followed a consultative process with career prosecutors in his office and declined to provide further details, citing an ongoing national security investigation.

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