Todd Blanche, Trump's lead defense attorney turned deputy attorney general, faces a precarious confirmation hearing as Senate Republicans grow skeptical of his role weaponizing the Justice Department. Despite moderating some of Trump's most extreme demands, Blanche's transformation from vanilla federal prosecutor to Trump's legal enforcer—and his willingness to demote career staff, pursue revenge prosecutions, and grant presidential immunity—has created an unprecedented erosion of DOJ independence that threatens his confirmation. Blanche quit his prestigious law firm in 2017 to represent Trump at his political low point after 2020, a risky bet that bonded him to Trump through shared commitment during adversity.