Trump administration will abide by ruling halting $1.8bn 'anti-weaponisation' fund

Reuters

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) says it will abide by a court ruling halting the Trump administration’s $1.8bn (£1.3bn) fund meant to compensate people who allege unfair treatment by the federal government during previous administrations.

In a statement on Monday, the department said it “disagrees strongly with the decision” made by the court.

The administration last month announced what it called an “anti-weaponisation fund” as part of its settlement agreement with US President Donald Trump over a leak of his tax returns.

Both Republicans and Democrats have criticised it as a “slush fund” and a federal judge temporarily blocked its creation until a hearing on 12 June.

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The DOJ defended the fund’s establishment on Monday, saying in a statement on X that it was created “to make up for the tremendous abuse, harm, and hate unfairly shown to so many people”.

The fund was “open to anybody who was so weaponized, targeted, or persecuted, whether they were Democrat, Republican, Conservative, Independent, or otherwise”, the DOJ said.

The White House directed comments about the decision to the justice department.

Last week, US Judge Leonie Brinkema temporarily stopped the creation of $1.776bn government fund to compensate individuals who claimed to be targets of political investigation by previous administrations.

The fund had been set aside for “victims of lawfare” to seek compensation, and eligibility for it appeared broad.

Brinkema barred the justice department from taking any steps to stand up or operate the fund – including processing or dispersing claims – until a preliminary hearing on 12 June.

Responding to the judge’s two-page order last week, a DOJ spokesperson said they were “extremely confident” in the legality of the scheme.

The order came down after two men who alleged the fund was discriminatory filed a lawsuit in Virginia. The plaintiffs said they had been targeted for political retribution by the Trump administration but believed they would not be allowed to file claims for compensation.

Many Trump supporters who were prosecuted over the US Capitol riot on 6 January 2021 have expressed plans to file claims, as well as members of Trump’s former inner circle.

Several Republican lawmakers, as well as Democrats, have voiced opposition to the the fund since it was announced last month by Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche – Trump’s former personal lawyer who stepped in as the country’s top prosecutor after the ouster of Pam Bondi from that role in April.

Over the weekend, former US Vice-President Mike Pence, who served as second in command during Trump’s first term, sharply criticised the fund, saying it was a “bad idea from the start” and should be dropped.