Ex-DoJ lawyer fired by Todd Blanche urges senators to reject nomination

Liz Oyer, a former pardon attorney, condemned Todd Blanche, Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, over his Wednesday testimony to the Senate judiciary committee. Blanche fired Oyer after she refused to recommend restoring firearms rights to the actor and Trump ally Mel Gibson, who was previously convicted of domestic violence.

“I declined to rubber-stamp a political favor for a friend of the president, and it cost me my job,” the former US pardon attorney told the committee on the second day of Blanche’s confirmation hearing.

Blanche said on Wednesday that Oyer’s recommendation last year did not lead to her termination. “The decisions that she had made as pardon attorney in the weeks and months leading up to the end of President Biden’s term were completely inconsistent with President Trump’s authority,” Blanche said.

On Thursday, Oyer said Blanche’s comments were “provably false”.

“His claim that it had nothing to do with the concerns I raised is contradicted by documents and evidence,” she added.

Oyer urged senators to not “degrade our justice system further” by promoting Blanche.

“To the American public, it looks like Mr Blanche is running the DoJ as Donald Trump’s personal law firm,” she said.

“He is using law enforcement powers to pursue petty grudges harbored by the president. These pointless vendettas are wasting our scarce resources and destroying [the] DoJ’s credibility.”