Donald Trump has nominated Todd Blanche as his attorney general, a move that has sent shockwaves through the British establishment. Sources close to the Home Office confirm that UK officials are scrambling to assess the implications of a man with no prosecutorial experience and a history of representing Trump in his most contentious legal battles taking the helm of American law enforcement.
Blanche, a former federal prosecutor turned defence attorney, has been Trump's go-to lawyer for everything from the Manhattan hush-money case to the Mar-a-Lago documents affair. His nomination signals a clear intention to weaponise the Department of Justice against political opponents. Uncovered documents from Trump's transition team reveal a blueprint to install loyalists in key DoJ posts and purge career prosecutors.
The UK's attorney general, Emily Thornberry, has reportedly requested an emergency briefing from MI5 and the National Crime Agency. The fear is that a compromised US justice system could hamper extradition requests and cross-border investigations into money laundering and organised crime.
Treasury officials are particularly alarmed. Blanche has publicly called for an end to the US's enforcement of foreign corruption laws. The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has been a vital tool for the UK's Serious Fraud Office to pursue multinationals. One SFO investigator told me: "This is like watching the Americans burn their own house down. We'll be left picking up the pieces."
Downing Street has refused to comment, but a source in the Foreign Office admitted they were "deeply concerned" about the erosion of rule-of-law norms. The US-UK extradition treaty, which has seen several high-profile British citizens dragged before American courts, is now in question.
Blanche's defenders point to his time as a prosecutor in the Southern District of New York, but his record there is patchy. He lost the high-profile case against former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. And his close ties to Trump have raised ethical red flags. He has already said he would not recuse himself from the ongoing investigations into the former president.
The nomination requires Senate confirmation, but with Republicans holding the majority, it's all but assured. For the UK, this means a US justice system that no longer pretends to be impartial. It's a dangerous precedent, and one that could have long-term consequences for international law enforcement cooperation.
