BREAKING: Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s $1.8 Billion Anti-Weaponization Fund

U.S. District ​Court Judge Leonie Brinkema ordered the Trump administration not to set up or operate the $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” set to be operated by the Department of Justice on Friday.

The fund was set to be established as part of the settlement President Donald Trump reached with his own administration to drop his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS.

According to the DOJ press release on the matter, the fund is designed “to provide a systematic process to hear and redress claims of others who suffered weaponization and lawfare,” and “will have the power to issue formal apologies and monetary relief owed to claimants.”

The fund is set to expire on December 1, 2028, shortly before the end of Trump’s second stint in the White House.

CNN’s Paula Reid provided further context on the order on Friday morning:

We’re learning that a federal judge in Virginia has temporarily blocked the administration from moving ahead with this controversial $1.8 billion fund that could give apologies and/or money to people who believe they were wrongly investigated. Now in a brief order from this federal judge, saying that-, she says that, “‘Pursuant to the creation or operation of the anti-weaponization fund, which includes the transferring of money to the fund, the consideration of any claims submitted to the fund, and the dispersing of any funds from the fund,” all of that is temporarily blocked. She has set a hearing for June 12th to hear arguments on whether this should be a longer pause.

Now what’s not clear to me, Kate [Bolduan], is I spoke with the acting attorney general last week, we did a sit-down interview. He told me that he was in the process of selecting members that would oversee this fund, so it’s really even hasn’t been created yet. It appears  this judge’s order would cover Blanche having conversations with people who want to serve on this, selecting members, but Blanche has tried to distance himself from the day-to-day operation of this fund saying he will select the members, there’ll be five members, one will be selected in coordination with Congress. Those members will then set the rules for how this will work. So again, the judge putting a pause on the fund, I think it’s important to note that it really hasn’t been set up yet, but we know this has faced many legal challenges. What is not clear is if these legal challenges will withstand appeal. Standing or who has the right to sue is a little bit fuzzy here given how this is set up, but it appears to be at least a temporary pause on government’s effort to continue with this project.

Watch above via CNN.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!