Acting Attorney General rescinds Trump-backed $1.8 billion fund ahead of Senate hearing
Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, issued an order terminating the $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund tied to President Trump, a step taken to secure support from two Republican senators for his pending nomination.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche signed an order on Sunday formally ending the $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund that had been created to compensate political allies of President Donald Trump. The move follows weeks of negotiations with Republican senators John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, both of whom have withheld their votes on Blanche’s nomination to become attorney general.
A spokesperson for Sen. Cornyn confirmed the agreement, which comes before a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing scheduled for Tuesday. Blanche said the order resulted from “good faith discussions” with committee members and senators over the past several weeks.
"I think as far as Blanche and the Department of Justice, we were pretty much on the same page," Cornyn said on Thursday.
The Justice Department’s statement accompanying the order emphasized that the fund had never been funded, that no members had been appointed, and that no claims had been paid, declaring that “there is no Fund.” The order also narrows the scope of a related tax-audit immunity provision, limiting it to claims that were open at the time of the settlement and excluding future filings.
Senators Cornyn and Tillis, both members of the Judiciary Committee, have expressed concerns that the fund could have been used to compensate individuals involved in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. Their opposition delayed a previously scheduled committee vote on Blanche’s nomination.
Trump has repeatedly advocated for the fund’s continuation and warned that he might withdraw Blanche’s nomination if the senators do not relent. He also claimed that individuals charged in connection with the Jan. 6 attack had “their lives destroyed” and would benefit from the reimbursement.
The dispute follows a recent court ruling that criticized the settlement of Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS as self-dealing and referred one of his attorneys for possible disciplinary action. Blanche has denied the judge’s insinuations and the Justice Department has called the court’s request for a perjury declaration “unnecessary.”