SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
Todd Blanche was confirmed as attorney general of the United States early today after a contentious and at times uncertain Senate confirmation process. All Democrats as well as two Republican senators voted against confirming President Trump's nominee. NPR's Ron Elving joins us. Ron, thanks so much for being with us.
RON ELVING, BYLINE: Good to be with you, Scott.
SIMON: The final vote was 50-49. Can't get closer to get confirmed. The biggest hurdles were Republican lawmakers. What convinced them?
ELVING: They say they got a written commitment that Blanche would not pursue that $1.8 billion compensation fund the Trump wants for people prosecuted under the Biden administration, including the rioters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021. But the last holdouts who gave in also expressed more general frustration, saying a vote against Blanche would not rein in Trump or saying anyone Trump appointed to replace Blanche would be just as bad or worse. So not exactly a champagne moment.
There were the two Republicans who voted no, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Blanche is still very much the face of the Epstein files story and other controversies, and all of that will now be front and center through the midterm campaign this fall and for the next two years after that.
SIMON: This week, we heard of a temporary deal between Iran and Oman. Iran says the deal allows it to control ships entering the Strait of Hormuz, collect fees and still block vessels linked to the U.S. and Israel. U.S. has yet to accept or reject the deal. After over five months of this conflict, with this as the only deal on the table, does President Trump risk losing credibility even with his supporters?
ELVING: It's more than a risk at this point. Major polls show nearly two-thirds of Americans say the war should not have been started. And when the numbers get that lopsided, you are reaching that Trump voter base. Trump can call all those polls fake - as he does - and he can say his polls are just great without sharing the data, but against the facts on full display, that's just too much of a stretch, even for many Trump backers. You don't build credibility by straining credulity.
So even the Pentagon's top general is now reported to be seeking an off-ramp. The U.S. clearly wants to end this war much more than Iran does because Iran right now is winning control of the Strait of Hormuz, leaving Trump on the horns of a dilemma. He has few options for escalation, and he can't get anywhere without it. So he threatens escalation and hopes the tiny country of Oman can step in and salvage a good deal negotiating for him.
SIMON: In Michigan, the progressive candidate, Abdul El-Sayed, won the Democratic Senate primary by a percentage point over the moderate Haley Stevens. Does this portend a shift in the Democratic Party?
ELVING: It's not a straightforward case of one-off for just this race, and it's not quite a straightforward case of the entire party moving forever. There are clear signals here about the kind of Democrats who vote in primaries. They're moving left, as they have in the past, ready to listen to more radical rhetoric, ready to try more radical policies on taxes and healthcare. But this Michigan race was also a mismatch in terms of the two candidates, the dynamism. El-Sayed is a gifted communicator and clearly the stronger motivator. But he also opens the door to more divisive figures who will alienate elements of the traditional Democratic base, alienating supporters of Israel in particular.
SIMON: On Thursday, President Trump signed two executive orders to limit eligibility for birthright citizenship. The orders narrow the scope of the people he's targeting, but he signs these orders just a few weeks after the Supreme Court struck down his last attempt to get rid of birthright citizenship. Do you think he'll prevail?
ELVING: We can't really doubt. The latest assault on birthright citizenship is much more targeted, testing the edges around the court's earlier decisions, looking for exceptions where Trump and company might get a partial win and save face. We also see Trump trying to reverse his losses on other matters just now. He wants to try again to remove Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve Board, looking for a way around the high courts telling him he couldn't do that.
He is also looking for the Supreme Court to overrule a lower federal appeals court order that blocked construction of his new ballroom replacing the East Wing of the White House - an addition he calls a military site. And the federal appeals court this week said he could not do this without Congress' say-so. So we'll see if the Supreme Court agrees or sides with Trump and the overarching authority of the executive branch.
SIMON: Ron Elving. Thanks so much.
ELVING: Thank you, Scott. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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