The Trump administration plans to drop its controversial $1.8 billion "weaponization" fund the president sought to compensate alleged victims of prosecutorial misconduct under the Biden administration, two senior administration officials told Axios.
- "It's dead for now," one of the sources said.
Why it matters: Bashed as a political slush fund that could be tapped by those convicted in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, Trump's proposal has drawn bipartisan pushback in the GOP-led House and Senate.
Zoom in: The plan for the fund came about as part of a settlement between Trump and the Internal Revenue Service.
- Trump and his business had sued the IRS for $10 billion over the leak of his 2019 and 2020 tax returns by a former contractor.
- Last month, they reached a settlement in which Trump dropped the lawsuit in exchange for a $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund for government abuse claims for his administration to use with virtually no oversight.
- The settlement also included broad immunity for Trump from IRS audits.
- The plan was widely criticized on Capitol Hill, drawing backlash even from some Republicans loyal to the president. House Speaker Mike Johnson planned to raise the issue of the fund in a White House meeting with Trump, two sources said.
Driving the news: White House discussions about dropping the fund came after two federal judges weighed in against the fund on Friday.
- U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema of the Eastern District of Virginia halted the disbursement of money from it.
- U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams in the Southern District of Florida announced she would launch an inquiry.
- Williams was the judge in charge of the original lawsuit Trump and the Trump Organization brought against the IRS for the unauthorized disclosure of tax information.
What they're saying: "We're planning to respect the courts," one of the administration officials said.
- "This has become a distraction," a second administration official said. "The president believes government was weaponized against people — it wasn't just him. But this isn't the time and vehicle for it."
- After this story was initially published, the Justice Department posted a statement on X that complained about the Virginia court ruling but said: "The department will abide by the court's ruling."
The intrigue: Administration officials differ on whether White House staff members were kept abreast of the fund's creation.
- One source said senior administration officials were included in the discussions between the president's legal team and the Justice Department, which set up the fund.
- "That's not true," a senior administration official told Axios. "The West Wing got blindsided."
This story has been updated to include the Justice Department's statement.
