Todd Blanche shows why he’s Trump’s favorite, refusing to investigate his son over receiving a gift from Putin’s friend
That was predictable
Attorney General Todd Blanche is declining to investigate President Donald Trump’s son’s association with Umar Kremlev, a Russian oligarch close to Vladimir Putin who allegedly “heavily funded” his wedding celebrations held in May of this year. On Tuesday, during a White House press briefing, a journalist asked Blanche whether he thought it was appropriate for Donald Trump Jr. to receive a gift from Kremlev and if he would investigate whether everything was properly accounted for.
Blanche responded, saying that the president had already addressed the matter and that he wasn’t present at the time, which prevented him from giving a “firsthand account.” He added, “The president doesn’t know who this person is. Other members of the family don’t know who this person is. The president’s son has said that he’s a very close friend and that he accepted a gift in the weekend of his wedding.”
Blanche then turned the conversation around, saying, “When you say ‘am I investigating?’ am I investigating what? And when you say that person is a friend of Putin, I don’t even know if that’s true or not.” He also said he understood it was “fun” to discuss the issue and the “rhetoric around it,” but believed everyone concerned had already addressed it and that he had nothing to add.
The secret gifts from Kremlev are not so secret anymore
A ProPublica article published on Tuesday highlights the extent of Kremlev’s involvement in Donald Trump Jr.’s wedding festivities. According to records the source examined and interviews with 3 people who know about the event, Kremlev apparently “footed the bill for hundreds of thousands of dollars of wedding expenses.”
The source also said Kremlev supposedly paid the rent for one of the private islands where a reception ceremony took place and where guests slept. He also allegedly “covered other big-ticket items,” including fireworks shows. Kremlev’s team purportedly helped plan the event as well.
Trump and Blanche have a history
President Donald Trump and Attorney General Todd Blanche have a long-standing relationship. Back in 2023 and 2024, Blanche led Trump’s criminal defense team in several of his court cases. Then, in 2024, after Trump won the presidential election, he nominated Blanche as Deputy Attorney General, while Pam Bondi was nominated for Attorney General. Both were inaugurated in 2025.
After Bondi was removed from her position in April 2026, Blanche briefly served as acting Attorney General. Then, in August 2026, the Senate confirmed him as Attorney General after Trump had nominated him earlier.
Since his appointment, several people, including lawmakers, have questioned his ability to function independently as head of the Department of Justice while remaining so closely tied to President Trump. In the short time he has held the role, one of the things he has been most criticized for is his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case, which Bondi forwarded to him after he assumed the role she previously held during the investigation.
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