The dramatic debacle that is Todd Blanche's stymied nomination as attorney general – shrouded in political theater – is really all about protecting President Donald Trump from scrutiny by the Internal Revenue Service.

A pair of recalcitrant Republicans in the Senate are blocking Blanche's nomination, with the postponement of a July 30 Senate Judiciary Committee vote and Trump's threat to withdraw the nomination – for now.

But Trump still has options – the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 and the attorney general succession act of 1977 – to keep Blanche on the job, helping him keep the IRS at bay.

Trump is clearly worried about what happens 900-plus days from now, when someone new is sworn in on Jan. 20, 2029, as America's next president. If a Democrat wins the 2028 presidential election, Trump's gargantuanly profitable second term could draw IRS audits and investigations.

That's why Trump's sham lawsuit, filed for $10 billion against the Internal Revenue Service in January, was always designed to be settled in a way that protected him from audits. Even the two-step settlement was staggered in May as an act of political theater, with the first part playing straw man to provide cover for the second part.

Why is Todd Blanche's AG confirmation process such a mess?

Remember what came first, in a settlement Blanche announced for the Department of........

© USA TODAY