Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spoke at his Senate hearing on Wednesday. He said murders are down about 20% across the country.
"Murders are down roughly 20% nationwide," Blanche said. "We have the lowest murder rate since 1900. Violent crime arrests are up nearly 114%."
Blanche made the claims in his opening statement. This is his confirmation hearing for the top job at the Justice Department.
Blanche took the acting role after President Trump removed Pam Bondi. Senate Democrats plan to ask him hard questions at this hearing.
Blanche also praised the work of federal agents. He said agents took almost 5,000 child predators and human traffickers off the streets. He said the Justice Department filed nearly 100,000 indictments and informations since January 20, 2025. Those are the official papers that start criminal charges. They are not the same thing as finished cases.
He named two cities as proof of good work. He pointed to Memphis and Washington, D.C. He said federal agents teamed up with local cops there. He said that made streets safer.
Democrats want to talk about more than crime stats. Politico reports they plan to ask Blanche about his past. He used to be Trump's personal lawyer. They also want to know how the Justice Department handled the Epstein files. A special fund for people Trump's team calls "lawfare" victims may also come up.
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin leads the Democrats on the committee. He did not hold back. He accused Blanche of "aiding and abetting the most corrupt administration in history." Those are Durbin's own words.
Durbin listed what he plans to ask about. He wants answers on what he called the "botched release of the Epstein Files." He also plans to ask about a fund he called the "MAGA slush fund for cop beaters." Durbin also raised a deal he called the "Trump-IRS sweetheart deal." He said he will ask about "crypto corruption" too.
No one has proven Durbin's claims in this hearing. They are accusations, not court findings. The same goes for Blanche's crime numbers. Those numbers come from his own opening statement. The source report does not show outside proof for either side.
This hearing picks who runs the nation's top law office. That office sets rules that reach police and courts all over the country. That includes South Texas. Local prosecutors and federal agents in the Rio Grande Valley often work cases tied to rules set in Washington.
Crime numbers get used as political tools a lot. A senator can pick one stat to make a point. A critic can pick a different stat to push back. That is part of why hearings like this one matter. Voters get to see both sides argue in public, on the record.
Blanche's claim about the murder rate is a big one. He says it is the lowest since 1900. That is a claim about more than 100 years of crime data. Reporters and senators may press him for more proof as the hearing goes on.
Durbin's list of accusations is just as big. He named four separate issues in one breath. Each one could be its own hearing on its own day. How Blanche answers each point may matter more than his opening statement.
For now, the fight plays out in the hearing room. Senators will keep asking Blanche questions at this hearing. What Blanche says next, and any proof he shows, could shape how senators see his record.
