The Senate Judiciary Committee delayed a planned vote on Todd Blanche, President Trump's choice for attorney general, after Republican senators on the panel said they were not ready to support him. NPR reported on July 30, 2026, that two Republicans on the committee voiced concerns, leaving the nomination "up in the air."

AP News reported that lawmakers "scrapped" the planned committee vote. NBC News said the delay was caused by disagreements with Republican senators and confirmed that two Republicans on the committee were involved.

The most prominent Republican to publicly break ranks was Sen. John Cornyn of Texas. Reuters reported on July 29 that Cornyn said he was not prepared to back Blanche. The Texas Tribune reported the same day that Cornyn had put Blanche's path to confirmation at risk.

The Reuters report tied the delay to Republican anger over something called a "weaponization" fund. CNBC also reported on July 29 that the committee postponed the vote. Government Executive reported that the delay gives senators more time to look at Blanche's record and leaves open the question of whether he has enough Republican support to move forward.

The committee held hearings for Blanche over two days, July 15 and July 16, 2026, in the Hart Senate Office Building, according to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Sen. Chuck Grassley opened the July 15 hearing as chair, per a committee press release. Reuters reported that Blanche faced "tense bipartisan questioning" at the hearing.

Just two weeks earlier, things looked very different. Reuters reported on July 14 that Republican insiders described Blanche as being on a "glide path" to confirmation. On July 23, the Senate Judiciary Committee published a press release titled "ICYMI: Calls for Blanche's Attorney General Confirmation Continue to Roll In," highlighting endorsements including one describing him as the "88th Attorney General of the United States."

Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the committee, entered a statement into the Congressional Record about Trump's nomination of Blanche, according to a committee press release. No official announcement of the postponed vote had been posted on the committee's website as of the search date.

The NPR report was written by Ryan Lucas and aired on Morning Edition.

The broader context here is a nomination that went from expected approval before the August recess to a stalled committee vote in about two weeks. The shift happened because Cornyn publicly held back his support and at least one other Republican on the committee raised concerns. The identity of that second senator has not been confirmed in the reporting.

Here is why the numbers matter. Republicans hold 12 of the seats on the Judiciary Committee. For a nomination to advance, it needs a majority of the committee to vote yes. If two Republicans vote no, the result is a tie, and a tied vote means the nomination does not advance to the full Senate without special action by the chairman. Chairman Grassley has the option to send the nomination to the full Senate even without a favorable committee vote, but that route is rarely used for a Cabinet-level nominee and would signal a significant fracture within the party.

The "weaponization" fund at the center of the Republican backlash has not been described in detail in the available reporting, and the specific concerns raised by the two Republican senators have not been fully made public. Whether Grassley can resolve the objections before the August recess, or whether the nomination carries over into September, will determine how quickly Blanche can reach a vote on the Senate floor. The Senate's schedule tightens as the recess approaches, and a delayed committee vote compresses the window for that floor vote.