Close
MyNorthwest
News
Opinion
Sports
Tools
Connect

NATIONAL NEWS

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski says she will oppose Todd Blanche’s nomination as attorney general

Aug 7, 2026, 3:58 AM | Updated: 6:38 pm

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaksa, talks with Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., at the U.S. Capitol, Tuesday,...

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaksa, talks with Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., at the U.S. Capitol, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
Credit: AP Photo/Allison Robbert

(AP Photo/Allison Robbert)

Associated Press's Profile Picture

BY ASSOCIATED PRESS


WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski says she will oppose Todd Blanche’s nomination as attorney general.

The Alaska senator said in a statement that she is concerned President Donald Trump’s administration could proceed with its proposed fund to compensate Jan. 6 rioters even though Blanche has pledged to shelve the idea. Murkowski said Friday the Senate has leverage over the fund that Trump wants only because

Blanche’s nomination is pending. Murkowski says that leverage would be gone if Blanche is confirmed.

Republicans hold a 53-47 Senate majority but Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is not attending Senate sessions, giving the GOP little room to lose senators and still confirm the president’s pick.

Please follow our Community Guidelines

National News

FILE - An, " I Voted Today," sticker is stuck to an information sign at Olbrich Gardens, Aug. 11, 2...

Associated Press

The midterms stakes are high for these 2028 presidential prospects

NEW YORK (AP) — As most of the political world focuses on next month’s midterm elections, the shadow primary for the 2028 presidential contest is quietly playing out in public view. Democratic and Republican presidential prospects have been crisscrossing the country, raising money and tapping their political connections to help boost their parties’ candidates — […]

30 minutes ago

A sculpture of an angel stands at a memorial for survivors and lives lost to suicide dedicated by t...

Associated Press

First suicide memorial by a US archdiocese signals a compassionate shift by the Catholic Church

CHICAGO (AP) — The Rev. Charles Rubey recalls the moment when he realized Catholic priests needed to do a better job supporting families of those who died by suicide. Two women told Rubey they had asked their parish priest to pray for family members who had killed themselves. At that time, the Catholic Church banned […]

34 minutes ago

Bill Addington reacts as he visits a border wall construction area near his property, Wednesday, Se...

Associated Press

PHOTO ESSAY: A border wall rises in Texas’ Big Bend region but opponents push back

TERLINGUA, Texas (AP) — A tall steel barrier rises over the brush in Texas’ Hudspeth County. Erected in mid-September, it is the first piece of border wall in Texas’ Big Bend region, a remote stretch of territory where landowners have mounted a major fight against President Donald Trump’s signature infrastructure project. Landowners worry that the […]

1 hour ago

Goats graze along the Pecos river near it's confluence with the Rio Grande river at the border with...

Associated Press

How Texas landowners are fighting back against Trump’s border wall

RUIDOSA, Texas (AP) — The message from the Trump administration has been clear: It is moving ahead with a $46 billion border wall project stretching from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico. But in Texas’ Big Bend region, the administration has run up against intense opposition from landowners, many of whom are unwilling […]

1 hour ago

Associated Press

Asian shares are mixed and crude prices fall after an unsettled day on Wall St

Asian shares were mixed Friday in holiday-thinned trading, while oil prices fell back from recent gains. U.S. futures edged higher. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 lost 0.8% to 68,512.30. The Shanghai Composite index lost 1.4% to 3,758.47, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng climbed 1.1% to 24,046.79. China is due to release its latest economic growth […]

7 hours ago

This satellite image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Hurricane Isaia...

Associated Press

El Niño’s storm-killer winds and climate’s warming waters in fight over future of Hurricane Isaias

A supersized El Niño’s decapitating winds and the Gulf of Mexico’s toasty, storm-fueling waters are battling over the future strength of Hurricane Isaias. And the storm’s tilt and eye show who’s winning. All Atlantic hurricane season there has been “this battle between shear and just the overall conducive conditions,” said Colorado State University hurricane researcher […]

8 hours ago

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski says she will oppose Todd Blanche’s nomination as attorney general