Professor Claire Finkelstein, faculty director of CERL, testified at a spotlight forum in Washington, D.C., on July 22, 2026, addressing the nomination of Todd Blanche for attorney general. The forum was convened by Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) with members of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
In her testimony, Professor Finkelstein urges the Committee to reject the nomination of Mr. Blanche, citing “grave concerns about the future of the Department of Justice,” should he be installed as attorney general.
Mr. Blanche’s unwavering loyalty to President Donald Trump and his lack of transparency about the conflicts of interest arising from his relationship to the president as his former personal attorney suggest he is unfit to uphold the impartiality required of the position and would pose a threat to the rule of law, she asserts.
“His undivided loyalty to a self-serving president, whose interests he defends above all else, have created professional conflicts that can only be addressed through a debilitating commitment to extensive recusal,” said Professor Finkelstein. “As attorney general, Mr. Blanche would have to choose between abandoning his professional integrity and rendering himself ineffectual by his own extensive need to recuse. Dishonest or ineffectual—either way Mr. Blanche is not an appropriate choice for attorney general.”
Professor Finkelstein was one of four witnesses providing testimony at the forum. The other witnesses were former DOJ officials and a survivor of Jeffrey Epstein.
Participating members of the Committee were Senator Booker, Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Senator Peter Welch (D-VT), and Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA).
Mr. Blanche appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 15-16, 2026, for his confirmation hearing. The Committee has not yet set a date for a vote on his nomination.
Read the press release from Senator Booker’s office at this link.
Prof. Finkelstein’s testimony begins at 43:48
Claire Finkelstein is the Algernon Biddle Professor of Law and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania. She is the founder and faculty director of the Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law (CERL). Finkelstein is a sought-after national security consultant, briefing individuals, Pentagon officials, U.S. Senate staff, and JAG Corps members on issues relating to national security law and practice. She is also regularly consulted on matters of personal and professional ethics. She is a frequent radio, podcast, broadcast, and print commentator and has published op-eds in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Bloomberg, and Newsweek. Her other scholarly work has focused on criminal law theory, moral and political philosophy, jurisprudence, and rational choice theory. Read her full bio.
The views expressed here are the individual’s own and do not necessarily represent those of any organization or university.