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The United States Department of Justice announced on Monday the creation of a $1.7 billion fund to compensate allies of President Donald Trump who claim they were unfairly targeted by the previous administration.
The fund, called the “anti-weaponization” fund, will be administered by a five-member commission whose names have not yet been released. According to the Justice Department, President Trump will have the authority to dismiss the commission’s members. Applications for compensation will be accepted until December 15, 2028, a month before the end of Trump’s second presidential term.
The Trump administration argues that the fund aims to address cases of what it calls "political use of the justice system," including investigations into Russian interference in the presidential election and proceedings against those accused of the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, a former member of Trump's personal legal team, stated that "the machinery of government should never be used against American citizens" and that the process aims to "correct the injustices of the past."
The announcement comes after Trump dropped a $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), alleging the agency failed to protect his tax returns from unauthorized publication. Under the settlement, Trump will not receive financial compensation, but the Justice Department will issue him a formal apology.
The case involves Charles Littlejohn, a former IRS contractor who was sentenced to five years in prison for publishing the tax returns of Trump and thousands of other citizens.
The creation of the fund is expected to face immediate legal challenges. Democrats and watchdog organizations argue that the initiative could constitute a conflict of interest and use of public funds for political gain.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called the initiative "degenerate," accusing Trump of using state institutions to fund his political supporters.
The organization "Public Citizen" also reacted against the fund, stating that it constitutes "a payment mechanism for Trump supporters and associates."
A federal court in Florida had previously expressed doubts about the legitimacy of Trump's lawsuit against the IRS, while nearly 100 Democratic lawmakers filed a legal document accusing the president of "blatant self-interest."
This is not the first such agreement by the Trump administration. In recent months, the Justice Department has also reached agreements with former national security adviser Michael Flynn and former campaign adviser Carter Page, who had sued the US government over investigations they considered unfair.
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