DOJ halts Trump’s $1.8B ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’ following court order

The Trump administration’s plan to provide financial compensation to individuals who claimed they were prosecuted for political reasons, including those who stormed the U.S. Capitol five years ago, has been put on ice, possibly permanently.

Big picture view:

The U.S. Justice Department posted Monday that it will follow a federal judge’s ruling last week that blocked the Trump administration from moving forward with the creation of the $1.8 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund" and blocked the federal government from paying on any claims.

What they're saying:

The nation’s top law enforcement agency posted that it would abide by the court ruling but "strongly disagreed with the decision on the Anti-Weaponization Fund." The Justice Department also pushed back on claims that the fund was designed to compensate allies of President Donald Trump with hundreds of millions of public dollars.

"This Fund was open to anybody who was so weaponized, targeted, or persecuted, whether they were Democrat, Republican, Conservative, Independent, or otherwise," the DOJ wrote.

The backstory:

The fund was created as part of a settlement between Trump and the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his tax returns. The plan faced immediate pushback on both sides of the aisle, especially after Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche indicated that people tied to the January 6, 2021, riot in the U.S. Capitol would be able to seek compensation.

Two of the officers who defended the Capitol on that day sued to prevent the government from making payments to Trump supporters accused of participating in the attacks. 

 

PoliticsU.S.