The Department of Justice says it will halt its work on the $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” after backlash from congressional Republicans and court rulings against the administration.
The department said on X that it would abide by the ruling of a federal judge who temporarily blocked the fund.
“The Department of Justice disagrees strongly with the decision on the Anti-Weaponization Fund put forth by the United States District Court Judge in the Eastern District of Virginia, wherein the Court stated that, under no circumstances, may the Department of Justice proceed with the Anti-Weaponization Fund recently established in order to make up for the tremendous abuse, harm, and hate unfairly shown to so many people.”
On Friday, Judge Leonie Brinkema issued an order that prevents the Justice Department from moving forward with the fund. Shortly thereafter, the judge who heard the original case that the fund is tied to, re-opened the case at the behest of nearly 40 retired jurists who expressed concern of potential fraud on the courts.
The fund was the product of a settlement that Trump made with the IRS over leaked tax returns. He had initially sued the government for $10 billion and then pivoted to the “anti-weaponization” idea. The money was supposed to go to those who filled out a claim asserting that they had been treated unjustly by the United States government.
There are multiple lawsuits against the administration in reference to what many have called a “slush fund” for Trump’s political allies. One point of contention is Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s refusal to guarantee that individuals such as those prosecuted for rioting at the Capitol on January 6 would not be able to receive payments after the harm they caused.
