‘Not Moving Forward’: DOJ Kills $1.776B Anti-Weaponization Fund

Amid skepticism from lawmakers—including some Republicans—Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told a House panel Tuesday that the Justice Department has scrapped its planned Anti-Weaponization Fund.

The $1.776 billion fund stemmed from a settlement between President Donald Trump and the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his tax information.

Blanche testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies, days after a federal judge temporarily blocked the fund. Instead, Blanche said it will never move forward.

Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee, asked: “We know that the department has agreed to pause this effort until at least June 12. I wanted to ask what your plans were for the fund after June 12.”

Blanche replied, “We’re not moving forward with the fund, period.”

“The reasons for the fund are something that President Trump has talked about for a long time, which is the fact that there were a lot of people in this country who had their government weaponized against them,” Blanche added. “The reasons for the fund remain as important as they were before. But we are not moving forward with the fund.”

A surprised Meng responded, “Not moving forward ever?”

“Correct,” Blanche said.

Meng followed up, “There is no more fund, then?”

Blanche answered: “To the extent there was a fund. Remember, the fund wasn’t set up yet.”

A five-member commission was supposed to be appointed to review claims and determine whether someone was entitled to an apology or monetary damages.

“There were no commissioners named,” Blanche said. “There were no claims brought forth yet. So we are not moving forward with the fund.”

The fund was intended for individuals who claimed to be targets of “lawfare,” or the weaponization of federal agencies.

Some Senate Republicans were stalling on funding the Department of Homeland Security over their skepticism of the fund.

Before the hearing on Tuesday, Mike Howell, president of the Oversight Project, a watchdog group, criticized plans for the DOJ to suspend the fund.

“Senate Republicans holding ICE/CBP hostage in an effort to kill it is shameful. They are re-victimizing the victims. They had no problem trying to pay themselves,” Howell said in a post on X.

Democrats argued the fund could be used to pay people who broke into the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

In Trump v. IRS, the president, his son Eric Trump, and the Trump Organization LLC sued the Treasury Department and the IRS in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida following the leak of their tax returns. As part of the settlement, the plaintiffs will receive a formal apology but no monetary payment or damages.

The plaintiffs also agreed to the establishment of the Anti-Weaponization Fund in exchange for dropping pending litigation related to the 2022 FBI search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property and the Justice Department’s investigation into alleged ties between Trump’s 2016 campaign and the Russian government.

The Justice Department said the fund was based in part on a legal precedent set by the Obama administration in the Keepseagle case. That administration created a $760 million fund to address claims of discrimination against the federal government over several decades.

During the hearing, Subcommittee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., praised the Justice Department for targeting leaders of drug trafficking organizations, including Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

“Over the past year, the Department of Justice has made great strides in combating drug cartels and curbing the flow of illicit drugs, including fentanyl,” Rogers said. “The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Department of Justice have taken down some of the most notorious cartel bosses.”

“While these are significant wins, the department must continue this fight to eradicate the flow of illicit drugs and bring more cartel leaders to justice,” he added.