Blanche Rescinds 'Anti-Weaponization Fund', Iran Strikes Off, Midwest Primaries
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President Trump is backing off additional attacks on Iran.
They said, please don't do it. And other, their neighbors said that too.
Negotiations resume today. How does the U.S. get out of a cycle of attacks followed by stabs at diplomacy? I'm Steve Inskeep with A. Martinez, and this is Up First from NPR News. President Trump's nominee for attorney general gave senators a letter they demanded. Todd Blanch finally rescinded an order to create a $1.8 billion fund for Trump's political allies. Is that enough to persuade senators who blocked his nomination? Also, how far can progressive candidates make it in the Midwest? Candidates on the left are running in Democratic primaries. Their goal is to shoulder aside more mainstream contenders. Primaries beginning tomorrow will do a lot to shape the midterm elections. Stay with us. We've got news you need to start your day.
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Zendaya and Tom Holland are back in Spider-Man Brand New Day, and the movie has a more grounded tone than we've seen from the franchise. But does it strike the right balance of fun and darkness? We'll talk about it on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour. Listen via the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
President Trump's nominee for attorney general has finally canceled an order that got him in trouble with some senators. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanch released a letter last night. He says he's rescinding a plan to create a $1.8 billion fund for President Trump's political allies. Two Republicans have been demanding that action in writing. They had been blocking his nomination to hold the job permanently. NPR's Claudia Grisales has been covering the action in the U.S. Senate. Claudia, good morning. Good morning, Steve. OK, so what did the acting attorney general say in writing this time and what's it mean for his confirmation? Right. This order was just issued a few hours ago. It rescinds this controversial effort the administration dubbed the, quote, anti-weaponization fund.
This is part of a deal that was made with the Internal Revenue Service under Trump's administration. Now, Trump threatened to revive the fund just this weekend if two Republican senators at Senators John Cornyn of Texas and Tom Tillis of North Carolina would not back off their objections to this fund. But there's a lot more elements to this deal that remain controversial. That includes a provision that would have protected Trump and his family from past tax audits. So while this may address a major hurdle that has held up this confirmation on the Senate Judiciary Committee, plenty of other questions remain. Yeah, and here's another question. I've been reading Blanche's letter that came out overnight.
It's mostly in the present tense. He says the fund, quote, is not moving forward, for example. He doesn't say this fund was bad or inappropriate. He doesn't say what he would do if his boss orders him to revive it next week. And you just said Trump still spoke in favor of it this past weekend. Are senators persuaded by any of this?
Yeah.
That's the big question now. This letter may address, again, those concerns for Cornyn and Tillis, who are on the Judiciary Committee, but Blanche still faces a lot of concerns that are not clear, making not clear that he has enough support on the Senate floor from Republicans to get that confirmation. And as we know, Republicans are operating with tight margins, so it doesn't take much to derail a vote in that chamber. And while all the focus has been on Cornyn and Tillis because of their roles on this committee, it's It's a new ballgame when we talk about a whole of the Senate Republican conference. And so we should also note the administration has resisted for weeks to go this far.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:02–6:29
2
What is Todd Blanche rescinding and why did senators demand it?
6:29–7:58
3
How might rescinding the $1.8 billion 'anti-weaponization' fund affect Blanche’s confirmation?
7:58–10:34
4
Which other provisions in the IRS deal remain controversial for senators?
10:34–14:47
Speakers
9 identifiedMore from Up First from NPR
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