Trump’s $1.776 billion ‘anti-weaponization’ fund leaves legal firestorm at feet of lawmakers |
Trump’s $1.776 billion ‘anti-weaponization’ fund leaves legal firestorm at feet of lawmakers
Legal experts say President Trump’s new $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization” fund is rife with legal and ethical issues that only Congress is likely to be able to address.
Trump and the Department of Justice (DOJ) set off a firestorm when they pushed to voluntarily dismiss a lawsuit from the president seeking $10 billion over the leaking of his tax returns, announcing they would instead create a fund to offer payouts to those who claim they have been wronged by the government.
The next day, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche signed a memo blocking the IRS from taking any action against Trump with regard to his past tax returns, a move that comes after years of scrutiny around whether the president dodged tax payments up to $100 million.
“The incredibly collusive nature of the settlement makes it problematic and should be of concern to every American,” said Rupa Bhattacharyya, who reviewed settlement requests in her prior role as director of the Torts Branch of the DOJ’s Civil Division and also oversaw the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund.
“He is the party that is requesting the settlement, and he is also the party that is making the offer in compromise, and that’s unprecedented,” she said. “It’s just unheard of, and it raises all sorts of concerns about whether or not this is a sham litigation that was filed purely for the purposes of skimming money.”
The arrangement set off a bipartisan firestorm in Congress, which may be better positioned to challenge the fund than the courts — if the House and Senate, both now under GOP control, choose to do so.
“I don’t think the courts are going to be the place to stop this for a variety of reasons,” said Ankush Khardori, a former DOJ trial attorney specializing in major financial fraud.
“Any effort to halt this can and should come from Congress, which can definitively and easily do.”
Democrats offered a bill to block the fund and a bipartisan measure led by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), a former FBI agent, who when asked about the fund, told reporters, “We’re going to try to kill it.”
GOP senators blasted the fund to Blanche directly during a heated meeting on Thursday that was described as “mutinous,” with leaders later announcing they wouldn’t vote to advance the budget reconciliation package over concerns with the fund.
The fund’s creation also sparked litigation from former Capitol Police officers who argued it sends a signal of approval to those who stormed the Capitol, and that “militias like the Proud Boys will use money from the fund to arm and equip themselves.”
Legal issues over the settlement were raised before it was announced, with the judge overseeing........