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US lawmaker questions if Paramount CEO pressuring CBS to air pro-Trump content

2026-07-14 19:33:37 UTC / Reuters

By David Shepardson

July 14, 2026 7:33 PM UTC Updated 11 mins ago

David Ellison, CEO of Paramount Skydance, speaks during the Paramount Pictures presentation at CinemaCon, the official convention of Cinema United, in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., April 16, 2026. REUTERS/Caroline Brehman Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

WASHINGTON, July 14 (Reuters) – The top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee on ​Tuesday asked Paramount CEO David Ellison if he or the company were ‌pressuring CBS News to air content sought by President Donald Trump.

Representative Jamie Raskin, who would take over as committee chair next year if Democrats win control of the House in November, said in a letter to ​Ellison: “Your company appears to be colluding with the Trump Administration to curtail ​media independence, promote political and ideological censorship, and stifle dissent.”

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The letter ⁠cited concerns regarding CBS’s editorial independence after 60 Minutes journalist Scott Pelley was ​fired and alleged that CBS editor in chief Bari Weiss asked him to make ​anti-ICE protesters “look more violent.”

Raskin and Representative Frank Pallone in May asked Ellison if he or the company offered to make changes to CNN’s coverage of Trump in exchange for approval of a $110 billion ​acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery.

Paramount declined to comment. CBS did not immediately respond to ​a request for comment.

“It is plain to see that you have been delivering for
President Trump at ‌CBS ⁠and that Bari Weiss is poised to deliver at CNN, if the acquisition is approved,” Raskin wrote.

On Monday, California and 11 states sued to block Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery.

In November, Raskin and Pallone said Paramount was “stonewalling congressional oversight” after they sought ​documents tied to ​the Federal Communications ⁠Commission’s approval of Skydance’s $8.4 billion merger with the CBS News-parent company.

Trump has aggressively pushed the Federal Communications Commission to go ​after media companies over programs or news content he deems unfair.

​Shortly before ⁠the deal was approved, Paramount last year paid $16 million to settle Trump’s lawsuit against CBS over its editing of a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris, ⁠Trump’s Democratic ​opponent in 2024.

Skydance also agreed to ensure ​CBS News and entertainment programming would be free of bias, hire an ombudsman for at least two years ​to review complaints, and end diversity programs.

Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by David Gregorio

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Meet the Democrats gunning to replace Graham Platner in a crucial Senate showdown

Platner’s grassroots volunteer leaders warn the Maine Democratic Party their support hinges on progressive commitments

July 14, 2026 1:56pm EDT / Fox News

By Paul Steinhauser , Jessica Sonkin

Democratic Senate candidate in Maine Nirav Shah says Platner supporters ‘have a home in this campaign’

In a Fox News Digital interview, Democratic Senate candidate in Maine Nirav Shah touts the policy ‘similarities between what Graham did in his campaign and what our campaign is doing.’

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PORTLAND, Maine– The clock is quickly ticking in the race to replace former candidate Graham Platner as Maine’s Democratic Senate nominee in the race to challenge longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins.

Candidates gunning to win the Democratic nomination must file with the state party by Wednesday to get on the ballot. Eight Democrats have filed so far to run for the nomination, which will be determined by 601 voting delegates at a July 25 convention held by the Maine Democratic Party.

Platner, a populist Democrat who was backed last September by progressive champion Sen. Bernie Sanders, won the early June Democratic primary in a landslide. He was challenging Collins in a high-profile, combustible and expensive race which is one of a handful that will determine if the GOP holds onto its slim Senate majority in November’s midterm elections.

A combat veteran and oyster farmer whose campaign caught fire, Platner steamrolled the Democratic establishment. But even as he crushed the competition to capture the nomination, Platner had already been forced on defense in the wake of a slew of scandals.

DEMOCRATS RUNNING TO REPLACE PLATNER CALL FOR ICE TO BE ‘ABOLISHED’

Graham Platner speaks at his Primary Election event on June 9, 2026, in Blue Hill, Maine.(CJ Gunther/Getty Images)

Platner dropped out of the race last week, amid calls from top Democrats in Maine and across the country to immediately exit the race following an explosive report contained an allegation of rape from a woman he previously dated.

Facing a July 27 deadline to replace Platner with a new nominee, the state Democratic Party announced that all 16 Maine counties will convene special nomination meetings this weekend where participants will vote to elect delegates.

Those delegates will meet the following Saturday, July 25, in Bangor, Maine, to vote for the party’s nominee.

Ahead of the vote, a “statewide network of volunteer leaders who organized, knocked doors, hosted events, and built the loop grassroots infrastructure behind Graham Platner’s campaign,” in an open letter on Tuesday to the state party made it clear that the organization they built “does not transfer automatically to whoever the Party selects.”

“It will only continue to exist, and only continue to be deployed, for a nominee who publicly and explicitly adopts” a list of core progressive commitments that they listed.

The letter is a sign of the tough task ahead for whomever wins the nomination to quickly unite the different wings of the Democratic base.

Here’s a look at who have already announced they’re running.

Nirav Shah

Shah finished with the most votes in last month’s Democratic gubernatorial primary, but lost the nomination to former Maine House Speaker Hannah Pingree following ranked choice voting.

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Democratic Senate candidate Nirav Shah holds a news conference outside Republican Sen. Susan Collins’ office in Biddeford, Maine, on July 14, 2026. Shah took aim at Collins over a fatal shooting by ICE agents that took place a couple of blocks away a day earlier.(Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)

Shah directed the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention from 2019 to 2023 and later served as principal deputy director of the federal CDC, stepping down shortly after President Donald Trump assumed office last year.

Touting his “strong progressive stances,” Shah told Fox News Digital that “my message to those supporters of Graham’s is a very clear one. You have a home in this campaign. You have an important voice in this campaign.”

Troy Jackson

Jackson, a former Maine Senate President and fifth-generation logger, came in third place in Maine’s Democratic gubernatorial primary.

Jackson campaigned with Platner during Maine’s primary, and, along with Platner, was endorsed by Sanders. And his gubernatorial campaign was also backed by the Maine chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).

He’s being supported by the Sanders-founded Our Revolution as he runs for the Senate.

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Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner and Troy Jackson stand together during a “Fighting Oligarchy” tour stop at the Collins Center for the Arts on the University of Maine campus in Orono, Maine, on May 24, 2026.(Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

“This movement is always been bigger than one person. It’s about taking on a system rigged against working people, fighting for Medicare for all, strong unions, higher wages, reproductive freedom, and an economy where billionaires and corporations finally pay their fair share,” Jackson said Monday during a Our Revolution virtual town hall, as he pointed to Platner supporters.

Shenna Bellows

Bellows, Maine’s Secretary of State, came in fourth place in the race for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination.

“Flipping the Senate in November is crucial. I’m running to pass Medicare for all, fight for workers’ rights, and protect our neighbors,” Bellows said in a social media post.

Maine Secretary of State and candidate for Governor Shenna Bellows speaks during a May Day rally organized by local unions, on May 1, 2026 outside City Hall in Portland, Maine.(Graeme Sloan/Getty Images)

If she wins the nomination, this will be the second time Bellows will face off against Collins. The senator topped Bellows by a more than two-to-one margin in the 2014 Senate election in Maine.

Jordan Wood

Wood is a former congressional staffer for Katie Porter who unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic nomination this year in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, a crucial swing seat.

Wood originally launched a Senate campaign last year, but pivoted to the House race when Democratic Rep. Jared Golden announced he wouldn’t seek re-election.

“This campaign belongs to the Mainers who built it: the volunteers, small-dollar donors, and neighbors who filled town halls in every corner of the state. We refuse every dime of corporate PAC, AIPAC, and lobbyist money, because a movement funded by the people answers only to the people,” Wood said on social media.

David Costello

This is Costello’s second run this year for the Senate nomination.

He finished with 8% of the vote in the June primary, coming in third behind Platner and Gov. Janet Mills, who had already suspended her campaign but her name remained on the ballot.

A former Maryland Department of the Environment deputy secretary, Costello was the Democratic Senate nominee in Maine in the 2024 election, coming in a distant third to incumbent independent Sen. Angus King.

Dan Kleban

A co-founder of the Maine Beer Company, Kleban briefly ran for the Democratic Senate nomination before dropping out and endorsing Mills.

“I fully support an open, transparent process to earn the trust of our delegates, unite our party, and bring a new generation of leadership to Washington,” Kleban wrote as he announced his filing on Tuesday.

Paige Loud

Loud is a social worker who unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic primary for Maine’s 2nd congressional district.

“The grassroots movement in Maine is more powerful than ever, and we cannot afford to lose that momentum. This has always been about building a future where every Mainer has a voice and a seat at the table,” Loud wrote as she launched her Senate bid.

Elizabeth Dickerson

Dickerson’s LinkedIn page indicates she served as a state representative from 2012 through 2014, resigning from the Legislature and working as a teacher in Colorado from 2016 to 2020 before moving back to Maine.

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“I believe in a world where everyone belongs, but the disparity between the rich and the poor keeps growing. I believe that with power, responsibility should follow,” Dickerson wrote in explaining her Senate bid.

Paul Steinhauser covers the national campaign trail from coast to coast for Fox News

How Jeffrey Epstein parlayed his elite network into a $25 million payday

2026-07-14T12:21:00-0400 / https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jeffrey-epstein-kathy-ruemmler-swiss-bank-settlement/

When elite Swiss banker Ariane de Rothschild sought to extract her company from the teeth of a federal investigation into its role in helping high-end customers hide potentially billions from the IRS, documents show she turned to an unexpected American businessman for help: convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

In this new role, Epstein appears to have helped Edmond de Rothschild, one of Europe’s largest private banks, resolve a menacing Justice Department investigation, garnering him a $25 million fee. And in doing so, he displayed another facet of his ability to tap his network of wealthy and powerful patrons for his personal gain.

As Epstein himself explained it in a Dec. 11, 2015, email to Rothschild, he had helped negotiate a deal for the bank to pay $45.5 million to the IRS, $10 million in legal fees, and $25 million to him — which he sold as a bargain.

“All less than 80 [million dollars] pretty good,” he wrote.

Congress will hear from a figure at the center of those negotiations Wednesday. The Swiss bank’s American lawyer on that matter, Kathy Ruemmler, a former Obama White House attorney, will be appearing before the House Oversight Committee to answer questions about her documented longstanding ties with Epstein.

A review of documents from the Epstein files released by the DOJ reveals details about his involvement in that settlement and how he achieved the mega payout.

What emerges is a glimpse at how Epstein mastered the appearance of expertise, combined it with a talent for brokering relationships, and through minimal work parlayed it into immense wealth.

The Swiss investigation

The Justice Department launched an investigation it called The Swiss Bank Program in August 2013. It was based on allegations that certain Swiss banks, including Rothschild’s, had assisted Americans in hiding assets through a variety of means including concealing ownership of accounts.

Epstein and Ariane de Rothschild, the bank’s leader, were first introduced that same year by a mutual friend, emails show. Epstein had finished up his period of incarceration and house arrest in 2011 following his plea deal for soliciting a minor for prostitution, and was a registered sex offender. But his social and business calendar remained full.

Epstein quickly began offering advice to Rothschild. Soon after their first meeting, Rothschild wrote to Epstein: “Thank you much for sharing your thoughts with me. I truly appreciate it as you well know how few people do so and have the courage of their opinions.”

People who interacted with Epstein at the time told CBS News that the academics, financiers and diplomats who continued their association with him gave him a patina of respectability, persuading them to ignore his past crimes.

Epstein’s criminal charges and the resulting negative publicity had, however, led to his loss of the billionaire retail magnate Leslie Wexner as a client, who had been the main source of Epstein’s wealth for over a decade. Payments from the financier Leon Black allegedly for tax and estate planning were now bringing in tens of millions of dollars, allowing him to continue his lavish lifestyle. In a statement to Congress, Black called Epstein’s services “highly valuable,” and he said Epstein’s work on his taxes “was responsible for billions of dollars in savings” and “had been vetted by reputable law and accounting firms.”

But emails show Epstein was still on the hunt for other sources of income.

Rothschild had married into the famous banking family and had been handling operational duties there since the mid-1990s. Suddenly the bank was facing an existential moment as the U.S. government threatened major fines and potential charges. Enter Epstein.

In June of 2014, Epstein sent an email to Rothschild, saying, “If I can be helpful, I would be glad to, I expect no, nor do I want any financial relationship of any kind. I am doing this as my way to do good. and to repay a deep debt that i feel I owe to edmonde.” This appears to be a reference to her father-in-law Edmond Adolphe de Rothschild, the bank’s founder, who died in 1997.

Kathy Ruemmler

In the summer of 2014, Ruemmler had just left the Obama White House, where she served as White House counsel, and returned to Latham & Watkins, the law firm she had departed five and a half years earlier. Her return came with the expectation that she would leverage her experience and connections to bring significant new business to the firm.

Ruemmler had also previously served as a prosecutor at the Department of Justice, where she helped secure convictions of Enron executives. Her legal credentials were so highly regarded that she would soon be considered a potential nominee to serve as the next attorney general.

It is unclear how Ruemmler first came to Epstein’s attention. Email correspondence between the two began in the summer of 2014. Ruemmler has said that Epstein cold-called her and offered to arrange a meeting with Bill Gates — an opportunity that was both professionally attractive and potentially highly lucrative.

In September of 2014, Epstein introduced Ruemmler to Rothschild. A mutual friendship and agreement to work together was quickly cemented. By October, just five months after leaving public service, Ruemmler appeared to have begun meeting with Justice Department lawyers on behalf of the bank.

Ruemmler has previously said she only shared a client with Epstein, but documents released last fall by the House Oversight Committee and by the DOJ in January suggested that that relationship grew more personal. Emails show that she sometimes addressed him as “Uncle Jeffrey” and accepted expensive gifts from him. Their correspondence continued until Epstein’s death in 2019. A search of the Epstein files reveals nearly 10,000 results for her name. Epstein opened doors and provided opportunities to meet some of the richest and most influential people in the world including Gates, Peter Thiel and former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak. Their friendship proved lucrative for both of them.

Survivors and advocates have accused her of turning a blind eye in the interest of advancing her own career.

In a statement to CBS News, a spokesperson for Ruemmler said “As has been well established, Ms. Ruemmler knew him in private practice, he was a referral source (including referring the Rothschild Bank) and she did not see or hear anything to suggest that Epstein was abusing women. Ms. Ruemmler has been open and transparent about her interactions with Jeffrey Epstein when she was a defense lawyer in private practice many years ago. She has done nothing wrong and had no knowledge of any ongoing criminal activity on his part.”

Ruemmler and the Swiss investigation

Over the next few months Ruemmler and her team traveled to Switzerland to do the laborious work of analyzing client files to counter DOJ claims and find ways to reduce the bank’s fine, according to a source familiar with the discussions. That was followed up with meeting after meeting in Washington, D.C., with the DOJ to hammer out the terms.

All the while, Epstein monitored the developments, but according to a source involved, he had no direct role in the actual work.

That summer, with the bank facing a fine that Ruemmler said could be as high as $556 million, Epstein broached payment with Rothschild for the first time. “If you choose to have me and my team involved . doj negotiation etc. structuring family ,KBL etc. , we should be able to invent a method of compensation,” he wrote. “I spoke with Kathy about an idea last night. And she or I can fill you in, if you choose to want it.”

A few days later Epstein wrote to Ruemmler laying out a plan: If the fine was $150 million to $200 million he’d receive $5 million; if it was $100 million to $150 million, he’d get $10 million; and under $100 million, his fee would shoot up to $25 million.

In the documents, Ruemmler never acknowledged that proposal. But in the same email chain she proposes hiring Epstein as a consultant through her firm to avoid issues “you were concerned about” and that “from a privilege perspective, that is the best way to do it.”

As DOJ negotiations continued, a payment agreement between Rothschild bank and Epstein’s company, Southern Trust, was formalized on Oct. 5. The agreement said Epstein was involved in “risk analysis” for the Rothschild Group.

Two months later, Rothschild wrote Epstein with two words: “45 mio?” — a reference to the DOJ’s agreement to settle matters for around $45 million.

Epstein would make his maximum payday of $25 million. The two firms actually representing the bank apparently would receive a combined $10 million for their work.

Shortly after, the DOJ sent out a press release announcing the agreement. Two days later, the first of two money transfers landed in Epstein’s bank account, records show. That week, Epstein’s assistant arranged for the purchase and delivery of a new television for Ruemmler.

Their mutually beneficial relationship and friendship would continue up until his death. By then, Ruemmler had left Latham and was hired as chief counsel for the investment firm Goldman Sachs. This spring she announced she was leaving that position but is reportedly staying on as a consultant.

In a recent interview in the New York Times Opinion section she said that she did not understand the full extent of his crimes until she was sitting in a courtroom following his July 2019 arrest on federal sex trafficking charges and heard the details of the charges read out by the prosecution.

A spokesperson for Edmond de Rothschild Group declined to comment and Latham & Watkins did not respond to multiple inquiries.

US cyclosporiasis cases top 1,600 with more cases likely, health officials say

2026-07-14T17:40:00.615Z / Reuters

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s logo and a U.S. flag are seen in this illustration created on April 23, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

July 14 (Reuters) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday it was conducting traceback investigations ‌on multiple produce items, including lettuce, as officials try to identify the source of a cyclosporiasis outbreak as the number of lab-confirmed cases continues to rise.

No deaths have been reported from the outbreak, but so far 141 people have been hospitalized, with 1,645 lab-confirmed cases reported across 34 states, according to the U.S. Centers ​for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency said it was aware of more than 5,100 additional reports that require more ​analysis and confirmation.

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Cyclosporiasis is an intestinal infection that can be contracted by consuming food — typically raw fruits and vegetables — ⁠or water contaminated with feces, according to the CDC. It causes diarrhea, nausea and other gastrointestinal symptoms.

While the United States has experienced outbreaks ​of the gastrointestinal illness before, the scale and geographic spread of this year’s outbreak are significantly larger, prompting concern among health officials, who ​have so far officials not pinpointed the source of the outbreak.

“This is an active and evolving investigation,” said Gwen Biggerstaff, a CDC foodborne disease expert.

In traceback investigations, officials collect information from sick people on the foods they ate in the week before they got sick.

The CDC expects that cases will continue to increase, ​potentially through the end of August, Biggerstaff told reporters. The agency cautioned that there is a roughly six-week lag between the onset of ​illness and the reporting of cases, which means more infections are likely to be identified as additional data is received.

The current U.S. outbreak, which began on ‌May 1, ⁠is centered in Michigan, with Ohio and New York State also reporting high numbers of cases. Michigan health officials on Tuesday reported 3,309 cases in the state, an increase of 669 cases since the last update on Monday.

Biggerstaff told reporters that the evidence collected so far suggests that cases in Michigan, West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio may be linked to one source, though that does not account for cases in ​several other states.

“There are a number ​of other investigations that are ⁠going on, some single-state investigations as well as investigations for the cases that are not currently linked to a cluster or outbreak,” Biggerstaff said.

The Washington Post reported federal and state officials are investigating whether lettuce ​served at Yum Brands’-owned

(YUM.N)
restaurant chain Taco Bell may have been associated with an outbreak.

The company said ​it has removed certain ⁠ingredients at select restaurants for precautionary reasons, adding that U.S. health officials have not confirmed a link to the chain and the outbreak.

Dr. Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota, said it is possible that the outbreak centered on Michigan is already over given that ⁠many produce ​items only have a shelf life of about three weeks.

Donald Prater, the FDA’s acting ​deputy commissioner for food, acknowledged that produce moves through the system quickly, but said the agency is looking at multiple clusters and sub-clusters, and it needs more information ​before it can determine whether the outbreak is already over.

Reporting by Siddhi Mahatole in Bengaluru and Bhargav Acharya in Toronot; Editing by Diti Pujara

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Lindsey Graham’s sister carries on late senator’s work, becoming South Carolina’s first female senator

July 14, 2026 2:36pm EDT / Fox News

Darline Graham was sworn in as senator Tuesday after her brother’s sudden death

By Alex Miller, Fox News

Trey Gowdy emotionally shares his thoughts on Darlene Graham, the sister of late Sen. Lindsey Graham, being sworn in as interim senator.

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Newly minted Sen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., represents a series of firsts for the Senate and for her home state.

Graham, who was sworn in on Tuesday, is the first female senator from the Palmetto State, the first sister ever appointed to the upper chamber and the first person to fill the colossal gap left behind by her late brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

“Lindsey has always been there for me, and now I will be there for him,” Darline Graham said during her appointment ceremony. “My brother was the most amazing person, outstanding leader and just a genuinely good man.”

WHO IS DARLINE GRAHAM? LINDSEY GRAHAM’S SISTER EMERGES AS TRUMP’S SENATE PICK

Darline Graham speaks during a news conference outside the governor’s South Carolina State House office in Columbia, S.C.(Grant Baldwin/Getty Images)

Though she’s never held elected office, she has had front-row seats to her brother’s work, appearing with him on the campaign trail and during his own swearing-in ceremonies.

“It is such a privilege to get to finish some of his important work, and I promise to work hard over the next several months to support the president and carry forward the efforts of my brother on behalf of the citizens of South Carolina and the United States,” she continued.

Years ago, when her brother was running for president, he was asked by C-SPAN whether, if he made it to the White House, his sister would get a role in the administration.

“If she took a role, she would be a great representative of our country. I can’t think of a better person to represent our country in an event than my sister,” Lindsey Graham said in 2015.

TRUMP REVEALS WHO HE’S EYEING TO REPLACE LINDSEY GRAHAM

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6401105922112

Her sudden ascension to the Senate and subsequent swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday in the old Senate chamber just a few yards from the Senate floor capped a fast-moving first chapter in replacing her brother, whose shocking death sent shock waves through Washington, D.C., and beyond.

Darline Graham was appointed to fulfill the remainder of her brother’s term Monday by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster. President Donald Trump recommended she get the position, and Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., spoke with her several times before appearing alongside her in Columbia, South Carolina.

“Lindsey took care of his little sister in years long departed. It’s my honor to ask his little sister, Darline Graham, to finish his work for him now,” McMaster said.

She is expected to act as a caretaker for the seat, finishing off the remainder of Lindsey Graham’s term through January, when a new face will take over as the junior senator for South Carolina.

GRAHAM’S DEATH IGNITES GOP SCRAMBLE FOR SENATE SEAT AS TRUMP HINTS HE ALREADY HAS A FAVORITE

Former Sen. Lindsey Grahama and his sister, Darline Graham(Getty Images)

Meanwhile, the public and private battle for the special election to replace Lindsey Graham as the GOP nominee in South Carolina is in full swing. So far, both Reps. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., and Ralph Norman, R-S.C., have shown interest in jumping into the race, which is scheduled for Aug. 11.

Trump has not yet said who he would endorse in the contest but did show interest in Rep. Russell Fry, R-S.C., who he backed in his first run for the House in 2022 when he toppled former Rep. Tom Rice, R-S.C., who was one of 10 House Republicans to vote to impeach him in his first term.

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And in the immediate future, Republicans will have to figure out replacements for Lindsey Graham on the several committees he sat on.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said the conference was still “working through” that task.

“Obviously, his sister will be sworn in today, and then we’ll figure out which of his committees she wants to stay on, and then we’ll go from there,” Thune said.

Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.

See the moment Darline Graham is sworn in to serve remainder of brother’s term

Published 3:55 PM EDT, Tue July 14, 2026 / CNN

https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/14/politics/video/darline-graham-lindsey-graham-sworn-in-senate-digvid

Darline Graham, Lindsey Graham’s sister, was sworn in Tuesday to serve the remainder of her brother’s Senate term after his sudden death over the weekend.

0:53 • Source: CNN

Politics of the Day 11 videos

Supreme Court justices push Congress to boost security funding: “Threats have come very close”

July 14, 2026 / 3:33 PM EDT / CBS News

Washington — Supreme Court Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett urged Congress on Tuesday to provide additional funding to enhance protection for the justices as they face a rise in threats, with Kagan warning that the “threats have come very close” for some members of the high court.

Kagan and Barrett made rare back-to-back appearances before House and Senate subcommittees to testify about the Supreme Court’s budget request for the next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1. Their testimony came just weeks after the Supreme Court finished handing down decisions to wrap its latest term, which included blockbuster rulings on immigration, voting rights,executive power and President Trump’s effort to restrict birthright citizenship.

The Supreme Court is seeking more than $228 million from congressional appropriators, an increase of more than $20 million. Part of the court’s funding request includes an additional $14.6 million to expand security for the justices provided by the Supreme Court Police, which would allow for an additional six agents per member of the court, according to budget documents. The money would also be used for travel when the justices are outside of the Washington, D.C., region.

Each justice is currently assigned between four and eight officers as part of their security details, Barrett and Kagan said, but that may increase if a member of the court is facing a particular threat or is participating in more public events.

Kagan told lawmakers that the recent increases in the court’s budget have been “almost entirely” for security expenses, since the Supreme Court’s in-house police force took over residential security for the justices from the U.S. Marshals Service.

“For some of us, those threats have come very close, and all of us live with the knowledge that they may again materialize,” she said. “But as the chief justice has said, all members of the court continue to do their jobs as they believe legally right, adjudicating cases without fear or favor.”

Supreme Court Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett testify before a House subcommittee in Washington, D.C., on July 14, 2026. Kent NISHIMURA /AFP via Getty Images

The Supreme Court Police is anticipating a 38% increase in threats for 2026, Kagan said. For federal judges, there was a 57% rise in “security incidents of significant concern” in fiscal year 2025, according to the Marshals Service. As of July 1, there have been 370 threats to judges this fiscal year, and the Marshals have conducted 512 investigations, according to agency data. In the last fiscal year, there were 564 total threats to judges, the Marshals Service said.

“It is increasingly dangerous to be a Supreme Court justice these days, and it’s appalling to me that some of the rhetoric is coming from public officials on both sides of the aisle who should know better than to levy personal and political attacks against the judiciary and the court specifically,” Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican who leads the Senate Appropriations Committee, said.

She cited comments from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in 2020, when he said of Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, “you have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price.” Mr. Trump has also lobbed sharp personal attacks against Supreme Court justices, particularly after the high court struck down his most sweeping tariffs. The president said Gorsuch and Barrett, who were in the majority, are “an embarrassment to their families.” He has also attacked some of the justices as “weak, stupid, and bad,” and called them “fools and lapdogs for the RINOs and the radical left Democrats.”

“Wherever these come from, and whatever political figure says them, whatever party that political figure is a member of, these statements are really unhelpful,” Kagan said. “They’re dangerous in terms of individual justices’ security and they’re not appropriate in the way to treat a coordinate branch of government.”

She said criticism of the court’s rulings are “fair game,” but warned, “intimidation is a different thing entirely. And when political figures of any stripe are trying to intimidate judges and justices to do things that they like rather than the things that they don’t, that’s where we really have crossed the line.”

Sitting judges and members of the Supreme Court have been facing a barrage of threats in recent years. A CBS News analysis found there were 126 prosecutions in 2025 that stemmed from threatening communications and 12 of those cases arose from menacing messages directed at judges.

Following the May 2022 leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, protesters descended outside the homes of several conservative justices, including Barrett’s. That June, an individual from California was arrested outside of Kavanaugh’s Maryland residence with a handgun, knife and tools.

Prosecutors said the defendant aimed to kill three members of the Supreme Court and had researched their home addresses. The individual, who was arrested as Nicholas Roske but now goes by Sophie Roske, pleaded guilty in April 2025 to attempting to kill or kidnap a Supreme Court justice and was sentenced to more than eight years in prison.

Barrett separately told House and Senate members about being given a bulletproof vest following the leak of the decision reversing Roe v. Wade and having to answer questions from her then-12-year-old son about it.

“I didn’t expect that performing this service was going to put me in the position of explaining to my children what a bulletproof vest was and why I had to wear one,” she said.

The justice also said that she was the victim of a “swatting” incident roughly six weeks ago. Her teenage son opened the door to their home and saw police cars on the street responding to a false report of gunshots and “raised voices,” Barrett said.

The Supreme Court Police, who were stationed outside her house, met with local police and explained it was a “false alarm,” she said.

“Federal judges across the country, throughout the judiciary, including the Supreme Court, continue to do their jobs without fear or favor, but the threat level is really high,” she said.

Several judges, including Barrett, have also been the victims of “pizza doxxing,” where they’ve received anonymous pizza deliveries to their homes, she said. The pizzas are sent in the name of Daniel Anderl, the 20-year-old son of U.S. District Judge Esther Salas who was shot and killed at their New Jersey home by a disgruntled lawyer in 2020.

“They’re designed to intimidate or designed maybe to punish after decisions that the person sending the threat didn’t like, as a warning not to do it in the future,” Barrett told senators of how she views the intent of threats against judges. “It’s hard to interpret, particularly those anonymous deliveries that are sent in the name of Judge Salas’s murdered son, as anything other than an attempt to intimidate and influence decisions.”

Supreme Court Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett testify during a House subcommittee hearing in Washington, D.C., on July 14, 2026. Kent NISHIMURA /AFP via Getty Images

Lawmakers appeared ready to provide the resources for the Supreme Court to beef up its security.

Rep. David Joyce, an Ohio Republican who chairs the House subcommittee, said judicial officers “must be able to do their jobs without fear for their safety or their family’s safety.”

Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the top Democrat on the panel, said, “With a deeply divided country and increasingly violent rhetoric being directed at judges, Congress must provide sufficient funding to ensure the safety of all judicial personnel.”

Beyond protection at the justices’ houses, the Supreme Court is also seeking $6.5 million for a facility to screen visitors to the high court outside of the building, similar to the Visitor Center at the U.S. Capitol. Roughly $2.3 million would go to cybersecurity, according to budget documents.

While the justices were on Capitol Hill to testify about the court’s requested operating budget, Kagan and Barrett fielded questions about the Supreme Court’s code of conduct, which it adopted in 2023, as well as the court’s caseload and requests for temporary relief made on its interim docket, also known as the emergency or “shadow” docket.

The high court has faced scrutiny for its handling of cases on its shadow docket, largely as it faced a slew of requests from the Trump administration last year to enforce the president’s second-term policies, and lower courts indicated they were struggling with how to apply the Supreme Court’s orders.

But Kagan said in the past year or so, the Supreme Court has “gotten more experienced” in handling those requests and providing a more thorough explanation of its decisions.

“We better recognize that at least sometimes, there is a need for additional information, and we have issued opinions and sometimes majority and dissenting opinions accordingly,” she told lawmakers.

Still, she acknowledged there are still improvements to be made.

Kagan noted that the Supreme Court has “tried to do better in important cases” by soliciting additional briefs and holding oral arguments, such as in the recent dispute over Mr. Trump’s attempt to fire Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors. The Supreme Court heard arguments in the case and ruled last month that Cook can continue in her post while her lawsuit challenging her attempted removal moves forward.

Asked by Rep. Mark Pocan, a Democrat from Wisconsin, about the shadow docket, Kagan suggested the increase in emergency requests may be because some parties have had success in securing relief while their case proceeds.

“People see that there is at least a potential for us to grant relief, and so why not file a petition,” she said.

Congressional testimony by the justices used to be a common occurrence. Justices appeared before House and Senate panels at least once every year from 1960 through 2011, according to a 2023 report from the Congressional Research Service. But their participation has waned in recent years.

Members of the Supreme Court — Kagan and Justice Samuel Alito — last answered questions from the House in 2019 in a hearing that focused on the court’s budget request. And sitting justices — Justices Stephen Breyer and the late Justice Antonin Scalia — last testified at a Senate hearing in 2011.

While Chief Justice John Roberts was asked to testify on Capitol Hill about ethics rules governing the high court in 2023, he declined to do so. Roberts told Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat who chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee at the time, that testimony by the chief justice is “exceedingly rare” and cited “separation of powers concerns and the importance of preserving judicial independence.”

Senators unveil sweeping Russia sanctions bill, urge passage in honor of Graham

Jul 14, 2026, 3:28 PM ET / CNN

By Jennifer Hansler, Morgan Rimmer, Manu Raju, Alison Main

Updated Jul 14, 2026, 3:39 PM ET

Russian President Vladimir Putin holds a meeting with members of the government via video link at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia July 8, 2026.

Gavriil Grigorov/Pool/Sputnik/Reuters

US senators on Tuesday unveiled their sweeping bipartisan Russia sanctions bill, which they have urged Congress to quickly pass to honor of one its main sponsors, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.

The legislation, which is meant to pressure Moscow and deprive it of revenue for its war against Ukraine, has been in the works for more than a year. Graham announced on Friday, just a day before his sudden death, that lawmakers reached an agreement with the White House to move forward on the bill.

The more-than-60-page bill, if passed, would impose mandatory sanctions on Russian political and military leaders, including President Vladimir Putin, as well as oligarchs, state-owned enterprises, and foreign companies that support Russia’s defense industrial base.

It would also impose sanctions on Russia’s shadow fleet, its energy projects, and its financial institutions. In addition, it would impose up to a 100% tariff on the top five countries, including China and India, that purchase Russian crude oil and natural gas. It does allow an exemption for countries that import less than 15% of Russia’s total natural gas exports and are “taking significant steps to reduce those imports,” a Senate aide said.

Another Senate aide noted that “the vast majority of Russia’s income, particularly used toward its war of aggression in Ukraine, is made up from its exports of Russian oil and gas,” so the legislation has been “narrowly tailored . to very much focus on that aspect of the Russian economy.”

It is unclear when the bill will come to a vote, but the first Senate aide said there were more than two dozen co-sponsors and growing as of Tuesday early afternoon.

Bipartisan senators have expressed hope that the bill could finally pass, calling it a “fitting tribute” to Graham.

The second Senate aide said that at last week’s NATO summit, Graham and Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen – a main co-sponsor of the bill – held a number of high-level conversations with administration officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, to move the bill forward.

Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, one of the key backers of the bill, said he spoke to Graham “literally hours before his passing.”

“I will say I have never heard him so exultant because we received word that the White House would support our sanctions bill after painstaking and sometimes painful, difficult bipartisan negotiation with the trade representative, the White House, the Treasury Department,” the Connecticut lawmaker said.

Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britt, another cosponsor, said she spoke to Graham on Saturday night and “he was so excited about getting the White House on board with the Russian sanctions bill.”

“He had just talked to the president. He said that it was going to be the most consequential thing that he has accomplished in his long and storied career,” she said.

Florida Republican Sen. Rick Scott was clear that he will back the bill.

“Whatever we can do to sanction Russia, I’m all in,” Scott said, calling Putin a “thug.”

President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the bill had “a good chance,” but suggested that additional measures targeting Iran and Hezbollah could be added.

The first Senate aide, asked about Trump’s comments, said that the legislation “does contain secondary sanctions and secondary tariffs … for those that are engaged with the Russian defense industrial base, among other items,” which would impact Iran.

Trump reveals when US military will leave Iraq after 23-year mission

July 14, 2026 1:46pm EDT / Fox News

Iraqi PM al-Zaidi declared armed factions would have ‘no justification’ once the coalition mission ends

By Morgan Phillips Fox News

Published July 14, 2026 1:46pm EDT | Updated July 14, 2026 2:28pm EDT

Trump says US no longer needs troops in Iraq

President Donald Trump says Iraq is ready to stand on its own without U.S. troops, while Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi says armed groups outside state control will have “no justification” after the coalition mission ends.

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President Donald Trump said Tuesday the United States no longer believes it needs a military presence in Iraq, arguing Iran has been weakened enough for Baghdad to stand on its own as the U.S.-led coalition mission approaches its planned Sept. 30 conclusion.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi echoed that vision, declaring that armed factions operating outside state control would have “no justification” once the coalition mission concludes and insisting Iraq’s security forces would be capable of protecting the country on their own. Al-Zaidi said limiting weapons to the state was “a decision, not an option.”

Trump said the U.S. partnership with Iraq would shift away from military cooperation toward investment and energy development, while al-Zaidi said: “The 30th of September, the U.S. forces would be out of Iraq. While U.S. companies will be inside Iraq.”

TRUMP ADMIN WARNS IRAQ OVER IRAN TERROR PROXIES AS US REPORTEDLY BLOCKS CASH PAYMENTS

U.S. President Donald Trump gestures toward Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi as they participate in a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, July 14, 2026.(Evan Vucci/Reuters)

“We don’t think we need the military there anymore,” Trump said. “We’re there to help them. We’re there to protect them if need be. But we don’t think that’s going to be necessary.”

He argued Iraq’s security environment had fundamentally changed because Iran had been “very much destabilized” and its military was now “just a tiny fraction” of what it had been four months ago.

The remarks underscore a remarkable shift for a country once synonymous with roadside bombs, sectarian violence and the fight against ISIS. More than two decades after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the Trump administration is publicly arguing the security environment has improved enough to replace a military partnership with an economic one, pointing to billions of dollars in planned U.S. energy investments as evidence American companies are now willing to do business where American troops once fought.

Iran has long exercised influence in Iraq through political parties and powerful militias within the Popular Mobilization Forces, many of which have operated alongside — but outside — the Iraqi security apparatus. Washington has for years pressed Baghdad to bring those groups fully under state control.

HOW IRAN ATTACKS ARE FORCING THE PENTAGON TO RETHINK ITS DECADES-OLD MIDDLE EAST BASE STRATEGY

Under a 2024 agreement, the U.S. and Iraq agreed to end the American-led coalition’s military mission in Iraq starting in September 2025. While U.S. forces drew down from several bases, American troops have remained in the country in an advisory role and to support counter-ISIS operations tied to neighboring Syria.

U.S soldiers rest at their base on March 5, 2009 in Baghdad, Iraq.(Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images)

Iraqi riot police close a bridge leading to the heavily guarded Green Zone during a demonstration of supporters of Iraq’s influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr against corruption in Tahrir Square in Baghdad, Iraq.(AP Photo/Karim Kadim)

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About 2,500 U.S. troops remained in Iraq prior to the beginning of the drawdown in September 2025, down from a peak of about 170,000 during 2007 at the height of the Iraq war. Nearly all U.S. forces departed in 2011 before about 5,000 returned in 2014 to fight ISIS.

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Al-Zaidi, a businessman and political newcomer, took office this year after emerging as a consensus candidate following months of political deadlock. Trump publicly backed his candidacy and opposed the return of former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, whom the administration viewed as too closely aligned with Iran.

During Tuesday’s Oval Office meeting, Trump repeatedly praised al-Zaidi, calling him “a great leader” and predicting his influence would extend “all throughout the Middle East.” Trump also claimed he had “played a role” in al-Zaidi’s rise to power and said his endorsement helped propel the Iraqi leader to victory.

Blanche set to face harsh questioning at Senate confirmation hearing for attorney general

2026-07-14T12:53:00-0400 / CBS News

Washington— Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche will appear Wednesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee for his confirmation hearing to take over the role on a permanent basis, where he is set to face tough questions about hot-button issues he has been involved in during his time at the Justice Department.

Democrats are expected to grill him over what they believe are politicized prosecutions, the department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files and his prior advocacy for a nearly $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund.

President Trump nominated Blanche, his former personal defense attorney, to lead the Justice Department last month following the ouster of Pam Bondi in early April. He has been acting in a temporary capacity since Bondi’s firing.

While Republicans hold the majority of seats on the Judiciary panel, the party’s margin narrowed with the unexpected death of Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina late Saturday. Graham was one of the most senior Republicans on the Judiciary Committee and a staunch defender of Blanche.

Most observers believe Blanche is likely to be narrowly confirmed by the GOP-led Senate. Still, he may face skeptical questions from some Republicans on the Judiciary Committee, namely Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina.

“Anti-weaponization” fund and IRS deal

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., on July 1, 2026. Graeme Sloan / Bloomberg via Getty Images

Cornyn, Tillis and other Republicans criticized a settlement between the IRS and Mr. Trump that resolved a civil lawsuit over the leak of the president’s tax returns by a former government contractor.

That deal called for the creation of the new fund at the Justice Department to pay victims of so-called government “weaponization” and granted immunity to Mr. Trump, his two oldest sons, his company and related companies from future tax claims.

Amid bipartisan backlash, Blanche testified to a House committee last month that the department was scrapping the payout plan. His assertions, though, have done little to quell the fallout from the anti-weaponization program and broader settlement.

On Monday, a federal judge in Miami rebuked the Justice Department and sanctioned an attorney for Mr. Trump in the IRS case, finding the president pursued the lawsuit “for an improper purpose.”

The ruling raised questions about whether Blanche and Stanley Woodward, the No. 3 official at the Justice Department, violated ethical rules. It barred them from citing the provisions of the deal as evidence of a settlement in any formal court or government proceeding.

In a separate case, which challenges the legality of the Justice Department’s fund, the Trump administration last month declined to submit to a court a sworn declaration from Blanche and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent that reiterated the claim that the fund is defunct, calling the demand “unnecessary.”

A hearing in the case is set to take place Wednesday in federal court in Virginia, while Blanche’s confirmation hearing is unfolding.

Blanche reiterated to reporters last month that “the answer remains the same, that the anti-weaponization fund is dead, it’s not coming back to life, it’s not on life support, it never was really started.”

A Justice Department spokesperson dismissed the Miami judge’s ruling, saying it was incorrect.

“There was no collusion in this case, and the partisan judge who speculated otherwise has disregarded decades of precedent,” the spokesperson said.

“This case was brought by President Trump in his personal capacity, as well as by several members of his family, who were all victims of admitted violations of law. There was a live dispute because the plaintiffs sought relief that the government had not provided. The plaintiffs did not receive any money and were barred from receiving any from the now-defunct Anti-Weaponization Fund.”

Blanche’s handling of Trump’s political priorities

Blanche served as deputy attorney general before Bondi’s departure. During his time in that role, he oversaw the controversial indictments of former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, who are frequent targets of Mr. Trump’s ire. Both of the cases were dismissed after a federal judge determined the indictments were secured by an unlawfully appointed interim U.S. attorney. The Justice Department is appealing that decision.

Comey faces a separate legal battle after he was indicted in April for allegedly making threats against the president. He briefly shared an image on Instagram last year that showed seashells arranged on a beach to form the numbers “86 47,” which Mr. Trump said on Truth Social is a “mob term for ‘kill him.’”

Legal experts and former federal prosecutors who spoke with CBS News in the wake of the indictment, however, were skeptical that the Justice Department can show Comey’s speech is not covered by the First Amendment. Comey deleted the image from his social media account soon after it was posted and said he did not realize some associate the numbers with violence.

He has denied any wrongdoing and is set to appear in court for an arraignment in September. On Tuesday, his lawyers indicated in court filings they intend to challenge the prosecution as being both selective and vindictive.

In the criminal case brought against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran man who was mistakenly deported to El Salvador last year and brought back to face human smuggling charges, a federal judge in Tennessee dismissed the indictment after concluding the prosecution was vindictive. The judge wrote that public comments from Blanche, as well as other factors, tainted the investigation into Abrego Garcia “with a vindictive motive.”

A Justice Department spokesperson dismissed the judge as an “activist,” saying the decision “was a wrong and dangerous attempt to place politics above public safety.”

Blanche also made numerous misstatements about the ongoing criminal prosecution against the Southern Poverty Law Center in Alabama, including falsely claiming the case started during President Joe Biden’s tenure. The investigation, however, was opened during Mr. Trump’s first term, when Jeff Sessions was serving as attorney general. Blanche also incorrectly asserted that the nonprofit never shared intelligence about hate groups with law enforcement.

And his decision to personally interview Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s accomplice who is serving a 20-year prison sentence, sparked shock among former prosecutors who viewed his actions as improper and unethical.

Blanche met with Maxwell while an appeal of her criminal conviction on sex-trafficking charges was pending before the Supreme Court. Soon after the two met, Maxwell was transferred from a low-security federal correctional institute in Tallahassee, Florida, to a minimum security prison camp in Texas.

A Bureau of Prisons spokesperson previously said that Maxwell was transferred for security reasons and received no preferential treatment.

Blanche’s career

Blanche has had a somewhat unusual career trajectory compared with others who have reached the top ranks of the Justice Department. He started working at the department as a paralegal while he attended night school at Brooklyn Law to earn his degree. He then worked his way up the ladder in New York’s Southern District, one of the most high-profile U.S. attorney’s offices in the country.

Those who knew Blanche from his time as a federal prosecutor in New York had largely positive interactions, telling CBS News he never discussed politics in the office and was considered a solid prosecutor. They described him as a “bro” who people in the office enjoyed getting a beer with after work.

After many years in New York’s Southern District, he left to join the law firm WilmerHale. In a somewhat unusual move given his experience as a federal prosecutor in Manhattan, he never worked as a partner. Blanche later shifted to the firm formerly known as Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP, where he became an equity partner after about two years, according to a person with direct knowledge.

In 2023, Blanche left to lead Mr. Trump’s defense against 34 felony charges in New York related to a “hush money” payment made in the closing days of the 2016 election. Blanche often stood side-by-side with Mr. Trump in the hallways of a Manhattan courthouse as lead counsel during the 2024 trial, which ended in felony convictions on all counts.

When Mr. Trump returned to the White House, he nominated Blanche to serve as deputy attorney general. The Senate confirmed him by a vote of 52 to 46.

At that time, many DOJ employees reserved judgment, assuming his years as a prosecutor in the Southern District of New York meant he respected long-standing Justice Department norms and would not cross a red line.

But several of those who adopted a wait-and-see approach told CBS News their hopes have been dashed.

“There is absolutely no wall between the Justice Department and the White House,” said Gene Rossi, a former federal prosecutor who is now in private practice. “Blanche literally does what Trump wants him to do.”

Some of those who know Blanche well said they observed a change after he began representing Mr. Trump in federal and state criminal cases.

Mimi Rocah, a former federal prosecutor who worked closely with Blanche in New York and once considered him a friend, said she believes he has fundamentally changed, and has allowed his views about the Justice Department’s prosecutions of Mr. Trump to cloud his judgment in his leadership roles at the department. Rocah successfully ran as a Democrat for district attorney of Westchester County, New York.

“I think his viewpoint became transformed by this experience of representing Trump,” she said. “I do think he genuinely believes that Trump was persecuted.”

“The problem is carrying it over into this position, and he seems to have rationalized that in his mind. And that to me is the really troubling part,” Rocah added.

The Justice Department has lost roughly 16,000 employees through firings, resignations and early retirements under the second Trump administration. As a result of the departures, Blanche is also facing hostility from current and former Justice Department employees who believe his leadership has been detrimental to the career workforce.

“Blanche has fired or overseen the firings of hundreds of these employees — usually without notice, and for improper, unlawful reasons,” wrote the advocacy group Justice Connection, in a letter signed by about 1,200 former Justice Department employees.

“Some were terminated for having worked on cases the President didn’t like; for being relatives of the President’s foes; for adjudicating immigration cases in accordance with due process; for declining to initiate vindictive prosecutions; or for refusing to lie in court,” they said. “These terminations violate the very civil service statutes designed to prevent corruption and political purges.”

Abhi Kambli, a former deputy associate attorney general who worked with Blanche at the department, said any ethical concerns about him are “overstated.”

“Todd Blanche is very careful and very ethical in my experience, and he’s very mindful,” he told CBS News.

Some inside the Justice Department initially saw him as a more moderating force against the White House’s worst impulses, several told CBS News.

Since then, between the new Comey prosecution, the indictment of the Southern Poverty Law Center and the proposal of the anti-weaponization fund, some said they think he has fully embraced the MAGA movement — likely in an effort to secure the attorney general nomination.

But Brian Nieves, Blanche’s former chief of staff, recently wrote a letter to the Wall Street Journal praising his leadership, and urging the Senate to swiftly confirm him.

“I saw what leadership looked like when the cameras were off,” he wrote. “I sat in meetings where the facts were contested, the legal questions were difficult and every available course carried consequences. Mr. Blanche listened, pressed for candor, challenged assumptions and demanded that recommendations be rooted in law and fact.”

Melissa Quinn contributed to this report.