President Trump’s Deputy Director at the Department of Justice, Todd Blanche, shared a photo of himself swearing in John Sauer as Solicitor General, with Blanche’s former employee Emil Bove holding the bible under Sauer’s hand.
[In 2023, Bove became a partner at Blanche’s law firm and joined Donald Trump’s criminal defense team — the two attorneys represented Trump in the federal classified documents and election obstruction cases. Sauer represented Trump in the 2024 presidential immunity case, United States of America v. Donald Trump.]
Blanche wrote with the photo: “What a difference a year makes. As we celebrate Judge Emil Bove’s confirmation to the Third Circuit, I am reminded that just a few months ago, he held the Bible as I swore in Solicitor General D. John Sauer. The three of us proudly served together representing President Trump.”
What a difference a year makes. As we celebrate Judge Emil Bove’s confirmation to the Third Circuit, I am reminded that just a few months ago, he held the Bible as I swore in Solicitor General D. John Sauer. The three of us proudly served together representing President Trump.… pic.twitter.com/q1A6msxrbR
— Todd Blanche (@DAGToddBlanche) July 31, 2025
Note: After hearing from dozens of former state and federal judges and hundreds of former DOJ attorneys who opposed of the nomination of Bove to become a a U.S. circuit judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the Senate confirmed the nomination on Wednesday.
Not all MAGA supporters are pleased with Blanche’s “the gang’s back together again” photo, with many expressing dissatisfaction over what they perceive to be laxity concerning DOJ prosecutions.
(The most high-profile example being the unreleased Epstein files and client list in a years-old case where no person other than Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell has been prosecuted — to the consternation of the MAGA faithful who were promised action.)
Representing this discontent, MAGA influencer Wendy Patterson, who has more than 200k followers on X, replied to Blanche: “Well looky here Todd your club that the rest of the country isn’t included in just got a major promotion. It’s to bad that the man passing out facemasks while ICE Agents were being injured will never see the inside of his courtroom. Or the State Employee who burned Tesla’s who isn’t facing federal charges or the people Doxing ICE Agents … I could go on and on and on… You were meant to be a defense attorney and should have never been rewarded with the job you have, kissing Pam Bondi’s ring.”
Note: Attorney General Pam Bondi congratulated her “dear friend” Bove on his confirmation and said “he will be missed” at the Department of Justice.