Attorney General Todd Blanche on Sunday defended the Justice Department’s lawsuit — filed at President Donald Trump’s request — seeking to block Alaska from certifying its election results if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses.

In a contentious interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” he denied the president is laying the groundwork to contest the outcome of the midterm elections in just over one week.

“President Trump is not trying to take over a state election in any way, shape or form,” Blanche insisted.

But when pressed on what crime the administration alleges is being committed the attorney general said, “Well, it depends.”

“There could be a crime,” Blanche said. “But the real wrong here is that Alaskans are going to be confused and will not have their vote heard.”

With a little over one week to go before Election Day, Trump administration officials have set their sights on the key Senate seat, where Sullivan is facing a surprisingly competitive challenge from former Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola. The lawsuit has heightened Democrats’ fears that Trump could try to undermine the integrity of the midterm elections.

Sullivan, the incumbent, is also being challenged by a retired elementary school teacher who shares his name.

“There is no dispute that the only reason the second Dan Sullivan is running is to pull votes away in a confusing and inappropriate manner from the Dan Sullivan incumbent,” Blanche said Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”

Host Margaret Brennan pushed back, explaining that “Dan S. Sullivan” is clearly listed on the ballot as the incumbent while his opponent is listed without a party affiliation as “Dan J. Sullivan.” She also pointed out that early voting began in the state on Oct. 19.

The Alaska Supreme Court had already settled the issue in June, ordering that both Sullivans be placed on the August primary ballot.

Alaska’s senior Republican senator, Lisa Murkowsi, who frequently breaks with Trump, criticized his administration on Friday for filing the lawsuit. “Alaskans don’t need any help voting for their preferred candidates, and the State of Alaska has already handled this by clearly distinguishing the candidates on this year’s ballot,” she said.

Peltola, who narrowly leads Sullivan, according to MS NOW polling partner FiftyPlusOne, told MS NOW’s Nicolle Wallace over the weekend that “this is exactly the kind of corruption that Alaskans are sick and tired of.”

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President Donald Trump is standing behind Vivek Ramaswamy after the Ohio Republican’s gubernatorial campaign put out a television ad featuring his opponent’s mother saying that her daughter, Amy Acton, had lied about being sexually assaulted by her stepfather.

The ad, which Ramaswamy’s campaign spent $4 million to air, has drawn fierce bipartisan backlash for invoking the Democratic challenger’s traumatic childhood history, specifically allegations that her stepfather sexually abused her when she was 12 years old.

“The Press, in a concerted and well coordinated attack, is trying to get Vivek Ramaswamy to ‘take down the Ad.’ Frankly, anybody whose mother spoke about a daughter in that way would normally lead to the daughter being precluded from serving in Office, let alone the Office of Governor,” Trump wrote in a social media post Thursday, calling Acton “a liar, and much worse.”

He later told reporters outside the White House that he was defending the ad “because I know that if that ad were about my mother, you would love it. You would love every inch of it.”

Trump again defended the attack ad during an Iowa rally Thursday night, reiterating he advised Ramaswamy “leave it up” despite mounting backlash.

“I said, ‘You got to ride with it,’” Trump told a crowd of supporters in Sioux City, Iowa. “They want him to take down an ad. I only wish I could have had an ad like that against somebody, but as it turned out, we didn’t need it.”

In the ad, Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur, who was married to Acton’s stepfather until he died in 2004, says: “Don’t vote for people who lie. Don’t let her become your governor.”

On Friday morning, Ramaswamy doubled down on the ad during a campaign event. “We ran an ad about lying. Amy Acton is lying,” he said. “The irony is, they are lying about an ad that is about lying. That is the truth of the matter. It had nothing to do with childhood abuse.”

Several Republicans who have said they were appalled by the ad called on Ramaswamy to cut it. Republican Senate nominee Ashley Hinson, whom Trump campaigned for in Iowa, called the ad “absolutely terrible” and said Ramaswamy should take it down.

Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine told reporters at the Statehouse on Thursday that running the ad is “wrong.”

“And, even at this late time — my wife, Fran, saw the ad just run this morning on TV — I would just urge the Ramaswamy campaign to take this down,” DeWine said.

In his post, Trump slammed DeWine, whom he called a “RINO,” a Republican-in-name-only, for criticizing Ramaswamy.

“Our RINO Governor of Ohio, Mike DeWine, who I unfortunately helped get elected years ago … was, as usual, disloyal to the Republican Party,” Trump said.

Vice President JD Vance, who traveled to his home state of Ohio on Wednesday to boost Ramaswamy, echoed Trump’s remarks, saying he was “disgusted” by Republicans speaking out against the ad.

“I have to admit that I’m a little bit disgusted when I see Republicans across the country who are whining more about that advertisement than they are about what the congressional Democrats and other Democrats want to do to the United States of America,” Vance said. He did not address the ad’s content.

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., joined her party members in condemning Ramaswamy. Calling herself as a “tried and true conservative,” Mace told CNN on Wednesday that “this ad is going to go down as the most shameful, disgusting, offensive ad this election season.”

Former Sen. Rob Portman, an Ohio Republican, also broke with the president and vice president, telling Politico that the ad “crosses the line.” He added, “I hope the ad will be taken down and the final days of the campaign will focus on policy differences.”

On Tuesday, Philip Stearns, Acton’s brother, called the ad a “desperate, disgusting attack.”

“It’s not surprising that Vivek Ramaswamy has stooped to such a despicable low as to attempt to turn the sexual abuse Amy endured at twelve years old from our birth mother’s husband into a political talking point,” Stearns said.

MK Pritzker, the wife of Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, on Wednesday announced that she had donated $500,000 to support Acton after the ad was released.

“Bad men gain power when we refuse to stand up and fight. Vivek Ramaswamy represents everything that is wrong with our politics today: arrogance, cruelty, dishonesty, and the belief that it’s acceptable to say and do anything for power,” she said in a statement. “This race is about standing up to bullies, confronting extremism, and making damn sure that men who thrive on cruelty and division don’t get a free pass to govern.”

With less than two weeks until the elections, Acton is narrowly leading Ramaswamy, 49% to 45%.

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CNN anchor Bianna Golodryga announced Thursday that she is leaving the network, days after its chief international correspondent, Christiane Amanpour, made a similar announcement.

“After nine wonderful years at CNN, I’ve decided to leave for an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up,” Golodryga said in a statement shared on X. “I’m grateful for the experiences, friendships and support from fabulous colleagues during my CNN years. Exciting news to share very soon!”

Golodryga is a co-anchor of CNN International’s “One World,” alongside Zain Asher. She has also regularly filled in for Amanpour, host of the network’s eponymous global affairs interview show.

Prior to CNN, Golodryga was a co-host of CBS News’ “This Morning.”

Friday will be Golodryga’s final day at CNN, a spokesperson for the network confirmed to MS NOW. Golodryga did not provide further details about her next opportunity.

Like Golodryga, Amanpour, who has hosted “Amanpour” for 17 years, did not give a specific reason for her departure when she announced it Monday.

“After many months of thought and a few sleepless nights, I have decided to separate from CNN, my partner of 43 fantastic years!” the journalist said in a statement.

Amanpour’s show will be scaled back from a daily show to a weekly one at the start of 2027, with its final episode set to air in May.

Golodryga’s and Amanpour’s announcements come amid major shake-ups at the network’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, following its acquisition by Skydance, the company run by billionaire David Ellison. Skydance is financially backed by Ellison’s father, Larry Ellison, the co-founder of Oracle and a major Trump donor.

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