MaddowBlog-Todd Blanche hit with state bar complaint backed by 101 former judges

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Traditionally, when judges step down from the bench, they focus on retirement activities. In the Trump era, things sure are different.

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https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/todd-blanche-state-bar-complaint-former-judges-trump

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s principal focus in recent weeks has been lining up support on Capitol Hill ahead of his upcoming Senate confirmation hearings, with a specific focus on winning over GOP skeptics. But Donald Trump’s controversial former defense attorney has more troubles than lining up 51 votes.

As this week got underway, Democracy Defenders Fund, Lawyers Defending American Democracy and a group of 101 former federal and state judges filed a complaint against Blanche with the New York State Bar, which included a formal request for an ethics investigation.

The 73-page complaint specifically focused on three areas of alleged misconduct:

Blanche’s role in orchestrating the creation of a $1.776 billion compensation fund, widely panned as a “slush fund,” and an IRS audit shield for the president and his family.

Blanche’s role in “abusing the investigative and prosecutorial powers” of the Justice Department to target the president’s perceived political enemies, including former FBI Director James Comey.

Blanche supervising the DOJ’s “flawed response to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, including the disclosure of thousands of records containing sensitive victim information.”

....Last month, meanwhile, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams ordered Trump to address allegations that he committed fraud on the court after he withdrew his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS. Williams said she was spurred to act in response to a request filed two days earlier by 35 former federal judges calling on her to reopen the case and look into whether the out-of-court settlement was “a product of collusion and is itself a fraud on the Court.”

Traditionally, when judges step down from the bench, they focus on writing or teaching among their retirement activities. In the Trump era, things sure are different.

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1. Here is a link to the complaint

Blanche's Senate confirmation hearing will be fun to watch

Link to tweet

Here is a link to the complaint
https://dea5edf3-e27d-4adc-a42a-b9c082bc3167.usrfiles.com/ugd/dea5ed_b024aad49d1049c1ab03f01e8f1aa7fc.pdf

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2. Todd Blanche faces 'unusual' and 'unique' complaint that may actually stick: ex-prosecutor

This is a very well written complaint that is backed up with a ton of examples of unethical practices and conduct. Blanche needs to be disbarred.

Todd Blanche faces 'unusual' and 'unique' complaint that may actually stick: ex-prosecutor #RawStory

— #TuckFrump (@realtuckfrumper.bsky.social) 2026-06-24T12:53:04.000Z

https://www.rawstory.com/todd-blanche-2677088680/

One hundred and one former judges have asked the New York State Bar to investigate Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche for ethics violations — and legal experts say this complaint is different from the ones that went nowhere against his predecessors.

The complaint, filed by Democracy Defenders Fund and Lawyers Defending American Democracy, targets Blanche on three fronts: his role in the Trump v. IRS settlement, his use of DOJ authority to pursue political enemies of his former client Donald Trump, and his handling of the Epstein files release, including a Ghislaine Maxwell interview that raised conflict-of-interest concerns.

Bar complaints against sitting attorneys general are not new. Similar referrals against Eric Holder, Jeff Sessions, Bill Barr, and Pam Bondi all fizzled. But legal analyst Joyce Vance, a former U.S. attorney, argues the Blanche complaint is different in two key ways: the allegations are unusually serious, and the complaint comes before he has even been confirmed to the position.

"The American public deserves an Attorney General who serves the interests of the Nation, and not those of a single man," the complaint states.

Norm Eisen of Democracy Defenders Fund told Vance that Blanche "has fallen short again and again with the most serious consequences for vulnerable individuals and our nation."

Adding urgency is the fact that the DOJ earlier this year proposed a rule that would let the attorney general suspend state bar proceedings against current or former DOJ lawyers if an internal investigation is open. Critics called it a naked attempt to shield DOJ attorneys from outside accountability. The internal watchdog system at DOJ, they note, has effectively been dismantled under Trump.

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3. A 101 former State and Federal Judges demand an ethics investigation into Blanche

Link to tweet