{"id":2678,"date":"2026-07-16T11:34:03","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T11:34:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678"},"modified":"2026-07-16T11:34:03","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T11:34:03","slug":"hirono-presses-ag-nominee-blanche-on-trump-ties-doj-weaponization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678","title":{"rendered":"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n

WASHINGTON, D.C. (HawaiiNewsNow\/AP) – U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, was among several lawmakers who questioned attorney general nominee Todd Blanche Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Read more Police warn of government impersonation scam on Hawaii Island<\/a><\/p>\n

The former defense attorney for President Donald Trump appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the first step of his confirmation process.<\/p>\n

Blanche, the current acting attorney general, drew scrutiny from Democrats over his relationship with Trump, with Hirono questioning his role in alleged weaponization of the Department of Justice.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt an April 8th press conference, a reporter asked you a question about President Trump\u2019s desire to see his perceived political enemies prosecuted. You answered, \u2018That is his right and indeed it is his duty to do that.\u2019 To clarify, Mr. Blanche, do you believe it is the president\u2019s right and duty to order the investigation or prosecution of his perceived enemies, yes or no?\u201d Hirono said.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Blanche responded, \u201cAs the president of the United States, under Article II, he\u2019s in charge of the Department of Justice. And so my answer reflects that idea, not that he has a right to go after his political enemies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Case of cyclosporiasis confirmed in Hawaii visitor<\/a><\/p>\n

Regarding cryptocurrency enforcement, Hirono said, \u201cOne of your first acts as a deputy attorney general was to issue a memo eviscerating DOJ\u2019s enforcement work against crypto criminals. Crypto crime surged in 2025. Mr. Blanche, are you aware that Americans reported over $11 billion in crypto fraud losses to the FBI last year?\u201d<\/p>\n

Blanche responded, \u201cOur crypto enforcement is way up compared to a year and a half ago. So I didn\u2019t eviscerate anything. To the contrary, actually we empowered AUSAs around the country to go after criminals in the right circumstances and we continue to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Republican senators mostly offered support for Blanche and defended the Trump administration\u2019s record at the DOJ.<\/p>\n

If the nomination clears committee, Blanche will still require approval from the full Senate to be confirmed.<\/p>\n

Read more Four UH players earn preseason all-conference honors at Mountain West media days<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, was among several lawmakers who questioned attorney general nominee Todd Blanche during a Senate hearing Wednesday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2677,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2678","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nHirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, was among several lawmakers who questioned attorney general nominee Todd Blanche during a Senate hearing Wednesday.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hawaii Moving Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-16T11:34:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0\"},\"headline\":\"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-16T11:34:03+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678\"},\"wordCount\":359,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/01070120532e556858bd25326214dcc6.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678\",\"name\":\"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/01070120532e556858bd25326214dcc6.avif\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-16T11:34:03+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/01070120532e556858bd25326214dcc6.avif\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/01070120532e556858bd25326214dcc6.avif\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":600},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2678#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Hawaii Moving Insider\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider","og_description":"Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, was among several lawmakers who questioned attorney general nominee Todd Blanche during a Senate hearing Wednesday.","og_url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678","og_site_name":"Hawaii Moving Insider","article_published_time":"2026-07-16T11:34:03+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#\/schema\/person\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0"},"headline":"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019","datePublished":"2026-07-16T11:34:03+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678"},"wordCount":359,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01070120532e556858bd25326214dcc6.avif","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678","url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678","name":"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01070120532e556858bd25326214dcc6.avif","datePublished":"2026-07-16T11:34:03+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#\/schema\/person\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01070120532e556858bd25326214dcc6.avif","contentUrl":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01070120532e556858bd25326214dcc6.avif","width":1200,"height":600},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2678#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Hirono presses AG nominee Blanche on Trump ties, DOJ \u2018weaponization\u2019"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/","name":"Hawaii Moving Insider","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#\/schema\/person\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com"],"url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2678","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2678"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2678\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2677"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2678"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2678"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2678"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}