Cassidy abandons yet another principled stance with backing of Blanche

It wasn’t until his final sentence that the outgoing Republican’s stoic façade broke.

“But the people of Louisiana can be assured I worked hard to make the right decision” Cassidy said as his lips quavered, with clipped pauses every few words, before leaving the Senate floor. 

The moment capped a routine that’s become characteristic of Cassidy’s tenure in Congress while President Donald Trump has occupied the White House: Take a principled stance against executive power, follow it with capitulation, then provide a confounding explanation as to why you did what you did.

This pattern has changed little since Cassidy suffered a crushing re-election defeat in May, failing to advance from the Republican primary. That outcome was all but assured in 2021 after the senator from Baton Rouge boldly voted to convict Trump in his impeachment trial for the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Even with that writing on the wall, Cassidy’s campaign did its utmost to paint the incumbent as a loyal subject kneeling at the throne of Trump. Voters weren’t swayed. U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow, with the president’s endorsement, and state Treasurer John Fleming, running a largely self-financed effort, advanced to the runoff, where Letlow prevailed.   

Just days after his primary loss, Cassidy joined three other Republicans to provide the deciding vote in support of a resolution to limit Trump’s powers to engage in war with Iran. He had voted against the measure seven times previously.

Some thought this signaled a new, defiant Bill Cassidy, intent on providing more resistance against Trump’s unchecked powers. But before and since the May vote on the Iran war, Cassidy has fallen in line with much of the president’s agenda. 

The die was cast with Cassidy’s committee vote in January 2025 to clear the way for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to become the nation’s top public health official. The senator, who’s a physician, backed Trump’s nominee despite railing against RFK Jr.’s anti-vaccine views and his affinity for conspiracy-theory medical advice.

More recently, Cassidy gave his nod to Sean Kaufman as assistant U.S. health secretary in charge of preparedness and response. The senator previously had concerns about confirming Kaufman over his past statements that called vaccine safety into question, including the repeatedly disproven link between vaccines and autism.

“Mr. Kaufman has said some pretty stupid things and irresponsible things regarding immunization. He has owned up to that in his conversations with me,” Cassidy said after advancing Kaufman’s nomination July 30.

Once again, a seemingly firm Cassidy stance crumbled under pressure no one would think still exists given his lame-duck status.

As for his vote to confirm Blanche, Cassidy offered what could be considered valid reasoning. He said he had spoken personally with two of Louisiana’s federal prosecutors — Trump appointees David Courcelle and Kurt Wall — and former Trump AG Bill Burr. All told him Blanche has brought stability to the U.S. Department of Justice during his time as its interim leader, according to the senator. 

But Cassidy totally muffled the already-muted trumpet he blew for Blanche in his milquetoast speech with his closing declaration: “I’ll be criticized for this vote. What’s new?”

It’s not that Cassidy isn’t capable of a passionate argument for a cause he backs. Just two days before the Blanche vote, he delivered an energetic, impassioned appeal for support from the floor for his bill to ensure Social Security’s solvency, complete with the clever visual aids he’s turned to in the past.

In contrast, Cassidy could barely muster a pulse to deliver his speech in support of Blanche. It was not so much of an endorsement for the attorney general as it was an acknowledgement from the senator that he would once again disappoint anyone clinging to the slim hope he might dare once more to stand up to Trump.

As recently as last month, Cassidy had been critical of Blanche for furthering the president’s plans to create a $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund and possibly shielding the Trump family from any tax-law repercussions should they run afoul of the Internal Revenue Service. The inviolability of the U.S. Constitution was at stake if you were to believe some of the senator’s prior remarks.  

Is Cassidy being criticized for his vote for Blanche? Yes, but that was inevitable regardless of his choice.

Is it new? No, but not because he has turned into Louisiana’s favorite political scapegoat.

It’s because few people believe Cassidy will adhere to any firm stance he’s taken. Absent a spine, he’ll be hard-pressed to find that posture in the five months he has left in office.