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On Politics

Thu Jul 30 2026

Zachary Schermele | Congressional Correspondent

@zachschermele

Hello readers. Welcome back to On Politics. Zach Schermele here, USA TODAY's congressional correspondent. It's Thursday. With yesterday's Fauci fiasco behind us, all the talk up here on the Hill is about Todd Blanche. Here's why...

Fauci spat? Meet Blanche drama

This morning, the Senate Judiciary Committee was set to vote on Todd Blanche's nomination to become attorney general. But that didn't happen: Late last night, the proceeding was postponed amid tense negotiations between the DOJ and two Republicans, John Cornyn and Thom Tillis. The retiring Senate duo is still fuming about a plan to shield the Trump family from tax audits. They also want the DOJ to kill Trump's so-called "anti-weaponization" fund.

Earlier today, the president threw another wrench in the situation, floating the idea of postponing Blanche's confirmation until next year, when Cornyn and Tillis will both be gone from the Senate. In response, Cornyn tweeted: "POTUS is mistaken if he believes concerns about the provisions in his tax lawsuit settlement are limited to me and Senator Tillis."

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) speaks to reporters outside his office following the postponement of Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s confirmation vote.

Evelyn Hockstein, REUTERS

On that point, Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee who is also retiring, told me: "I have no doubt that other Republican senators agree with Cornyn and with Tillis, and they've been afraid to say the first word about it." Stay tuned for more over the next week (the Senate leaves for August recess next Friday).

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A politics rundown

•	More on Blanche: Why Trump says he may temporarily pull him as his attorney general pick
•	Trump restores $600 million in global vaccine funding
•	New rule represents a "massive shift" in key immigration policy for asylum seekers

Daily photo gallery: See which DC statues were restored with gold in $5 million federal project

An Education Dept. lifeline?

Today, the Senate's Republican-led education committee approved a bill that would block the transfer of key divisions within the Education Department to other agencies. Republican Sens. Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski joined an effort led by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, to shield the offices overseeing special ed, Native American education, K-12 and postsecondary education.

"Will this bill pass as a standalone? Probably not," Kaine told me today. But he said it sent a loud message to two key groups: parents of students with disabilities and congressional appropriators, who are in the thick of spending negotiations that could curb some of the ongoing Education Department overhaul. "The fact that the authorizing committee, in a bipartisan way, said this should stay with (the Education Department) gives them a lot of leverage in that negotiation," he said.

Exclusive RFK Jr. interview

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told USA TODAY that the surveillance of foodborne illness is "working better than it’s ever worked" – despite thousands of people becoming ill from outbreaks of explosive diarrhea. Read more from his exclusive interview with my colleagues here.

Zachary Schermele is the congressional correspondent for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com.