Trump Says He Allowed $1.7 Billion Anti-Weaponization Stop
President Donald Trump said Friday that he had stop the Justice Department’s new $1.7 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund from going no further, then added that he had instead allowed it to go forward. His remarks followed earlier statements this week that he was not involved in creating or negotiating the fund.
Trump tied the fund to his civil lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his tax returns, saying in a Truth Social post that he gave up a lot of money by allowing it to proceed. The Justice Department says the fund is meant to provide a systematic process to hear and redress claims from people who say they were harmed by weaponization and lawfare.
Trump’s Friday account
In his Friday post, Trump wrote: "I gave up a lot of money in allowing the just announced Anti-Weaponization Fund to go forward." He also wrote: "I could have settled my case, including the illegal release of my Tax Returns and the equally illegal BREAK IN of Mar-a-Lago, for an absolute fortune."
He added: "Instead, I am helping others, who were so badly abused by an evil, corrupt, and weaponized Biden Administration, receive, at long last, JUSTICE!" The White House later said there was no discrepancy between Trump’s statements and its position that he was not involved in creating the fund but could have chosen to settle his case and prevented it.
Blanche and Senate Republicans
The Justice Department announced the fund on Monday. Trump said that same day that he knew very little about it and was not involved in its creation and negotiation, and on Wednesday he told reporters that he was not involved in the settlement.
On Thursday, Senate Republicans pressed Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche for more information about the fund during a closed-door meeting. Some GOP senators raised concerns that people convicted of assaulting law enforcement during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol could receive money.
Jan. 6 payout questions
The fund’s design leaves payment decisions to a board appointed by the attorney general. That detail has already drawn attention because several people tied to Trump or Jan. 6 have said they want to seek money from the program.
Michael Cohen said he intended to apply for payouts from the $1.7 billion fund, and Michael Caputo said he intended to do the same. Enrique Tarrio suggested he may seek compensation too; Tarrio was convicted of seditious conspiracy and sentenced to 22 years in prison for his role in the Jan. 6 assault.
Trump’s first-day clemency for more than 1,500 defendants convicted of Jan. 6-related crimes puts that question at the center of the fund’s next phase. Lawmakers are now asking who the board will treat as eligible before the money starts moving.
