Tillis links Blanche attorney general vote to Epstein accuser meeting

Sen. Thom Tillis said Thursday that Todd Blanche should meet with Jeffrey Epstein’s accusers before Tillis supports advancing Blanche’s nomination for attorney general. The Republican senator’s position matters because Blanche needs votes in committee to move his nomination forward.

Tillis said he views Blanche favorably but has not decided how he will vote. He pointed to Blanche’s statement at a Wednesday confirmation hearing that he was open to meeting women who accused Epstein of abuse, and said he expects that meeting to happen before he is ready to vote Blanche out of committee.

The comments added pressure on Blanche after senators questioned him about the Justice Department’s handling of a large collection of files tied to Epstein’s sex trafficking investigation. The department’s release of those materials has drawn scrutiny over redaction mistakes and the treatment of potential victims.

Blanche arrived at a Senate office building soon after Tillis spoke and told reporters that he had tried to meet with Epstein accusers, but the meeting had not happened. Blanche said discussions were underway to arrange another time later Thursday or on another day.

Blanche told reporters that the Justice Department would meet with victims or their representatives. He said that if they provided evidence that anyone committed a crime, whether tied to Epstein or another matter, the department would investigate and prosecute where appropriate.

Dani Bensky, an Epstein accuser, gave lawmakers a different account earlier Thursday. Bensky said women harmed by Epstein had sought meetings with Blanche through several avenues and did not receive a response.

Bensky told lawmakers the women deserved a direct audience rather than being ignored. Her remarks placed the dispute over access to Blanche at the center of his confirmation fight.

Blanche has rejected suggestions that the Justice Department brushed aside Epstein’s accusers. At his Wednesday hearing, Blanche said department officials had spoken with more than 30 representatives for the women during the government’s broad review of Epstein-related files.

Blanche also defended the department’s phased publication of Epstein documents. The process has faced criticism after redaction failures exposed nude images that showed the faces of possible victims.

At the hearing, Blanche said he accepted responsibility for errors in the release. He said Justice Department lawyers had been assigned a difficult job: rapidly reviewing millions of files for public release while trying to shield women connected to the case.

Blanche said the department moved quickly when mistakes were identified, including taking documents offline within minutes after officials learned of problems. He told senators that errors occurred in about 1% of the documents and said the department devoted resources to correcting them.

Epstein, a financier, was the subject of a sex trafficking investigation before his death. The Justice Department’s handling of records from that investigation has remained a flashpoint during Blanche’s nomination process.

This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.