Attorney General Todd Blanche fiercely argued there’s “nothing inconsistent” about his vow to protect police officers and President Donald Trump’s controversial pardons for violent rioters who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Appearing Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” things got testy between Blanche and moderator Kristen Welker after she questioned how Trump’s decision to pardon the Capitol attackers, including 172 people who pleaded guilty to assaulting police officers, on his first day in office is “consistent with your pledge to always protect law enforcement.”

“There’s nothing inconsistent about that,” Blanche responded. “Any president’s pardon powers are not limited. So when I say and when this Department of Justice says and when the FBI says, like we’re saying, and every U.S. attorney is saying that if you assault law enforcement, we will prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law, that is absolutely what President Trump expects, absolutely what I expect of our prosecutors.”

He added, “That’s completely separate from any president’s ability to pardon.”

Blanche made the remarks after Welker played a clip of him swearing during an appearance with Trump at the Nassau County Police Academy on Friday that if anyone touches a federal law enforcement officer in any inappropriate manner, the Trump administration and the Department of Justice will “prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.”

Welker doubled down by asking him directly if he believes it was “wrong to pardon the people who assaulted police officers on Jan. 6 given that you have vowed to protect law enforcement,” noting that Trump “did the opposite of that effectively.”

“Every attorney general vows to protect law enforcement, including me,” Blanche replied. “And so I’m not opining or in any way saying what President Trump did is wrong. Absolutely not. By the way, President Biden —”

Welker interjected, “Isn’t it inconsistent with what you said, though?”

“Absolutely not,” Blanche said. “There’s a difference —”

“Is it inconsistent with your pledge?” Welker asked again.

“No. There’s a difference,” he argued before telling Welker that it’s a different story if a president later chooses to issue a pardon to someone because it’s the president’s “right under our Constitution.” He then pointed the finger at former President Joe Biden.

Attorney General Todd Blanche and NBC's Kristen Welker spar Sunday over President Donald Trump's decision to pardon rioters who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 , 2021 during an interview on "Meet the Press."

Youtube/NBC News

“Do not forget that a few days before President Trump pardoned the individuals associated and who had pled guilty to the conduct on Jan. 6, President Biden pardoned hundreds and hundreds of criminals, many of whom were quite violent,” Blanche said. “So that’s his right to do that just like it’s President Trump’s right to do that.”

In the final moments of his presidency, Biden issued preemptive pardons to several of his family members, key military officials and members of the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attack, among others. The pardons were met with bipartisan backlash.

Welker then questioned what Trump’s pardons signal to the police officers who were assaulted by the pardoned rioters, to which Blanche said that the “message to police officers is consistent and the same every single day, which is that we will protect you.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Welker grilled Blanche over whether he would revive Trump’s $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” if he was asked by the president to do so. Blanche testified under oath that the fund is dead.

Blanche’s confirmation earlier this month was partially stalled over the fund, which was intended to give payouts to Trump allies who claim mistreatment from the Biden-era Justice Department, including the Jan. 6 rioters. Blanche’s confirmation also has come into question amid concerns that his loyalty to Trump could cloud his decision-making.

“Well, the president has said it’s dead as well. And as the president has said that he very strongly believes that those that had this Department of Justice weaponized against them should be compensated, he’s going to continue to say that.”

Welker fired back, “He said it’s up to you. He was just asked about it. He said effectively it’s up to you what to do about this.”

“And I’ve said repeatedly it’s dead. And he has also said it’s dead. He said it in a Cabinet meeting with the press there,” Blanche said, before retorting that he thinks it’s “enjoyable” for the press to repeatedly ask him about whether the fund is truly dead.

He added, “And there is no fund. No money went from the Treasury to any account. There were no commissioners established. And so there is no fund. There will be no fund.”

After Welker asked him if he can guarantee that anyone who attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6 will not receive one dime of taxpayer money should they file a claim against the federal government, Blanche refused, arguing that “anybody can file a claim against the federal government, not just anybody associated with Jan. 6.”

“I’m not going to sit here and say on a news program whether a litigation that may or may not happen will result in money. I can’t do that,” he added.

Earlier in the interview, Blanche dodged answering whether he will ever do something for Trump that “crosses an ethical or legal line.”

“The president will never ask me to do something unethical or illegal,” he said. “He never has. He never will. And no, I swore to the Constitution of the United States like every Cabinet secretary has done and like every attorney general before me has done.”

Watch Blanche’s appearance on “Meet the Press” below. Skip to the 2:35 mark to hear his comments.