President Trump on Wednesday dodged a direct question about whether his proposed $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund is permanently scrapped or merely paused, after acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told Congress the administration has no intention of pursuing it.
Asked in the Oval Office whether the fund is dead, Trump replied, “It’s a… I’d have to ask the lawyers. I don’t know.” He called the initiative a “beautiful thing” but distanced himself from its origins, saying he didn’t come up with the idea. Trump then pivoted to attack the media, particularly CNN, accusing them of abusing his supporters.
“What happened to great people, great American people, the way they were victimized, the way they were savaged,” Trump said. “You have suicides, they killed themselves, they went bankrupt, they were weaponized by the Biden administration, by a bunch of thugs, including Obama people, and like nobody’s probably ever been.”
The fund was part of a settlement Trump reached with the Internal Revenue Service in a $10 billion lawsuit over the agency’s failure to protect his tax return information. But it quickly became a political lightning rod. Democrats derided it as a potential slush fund, and some Republicans worried it could compensate individuals who committed violent acts during the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
Blanche, whom Trump has reportedly considered for the permanent attorney general role, told House lawmakers at a hearing Tuesday that “we are not moving forward with the fund. Period.” When pressed on whether that meant the fund would never move forward, Blanche answered “correct.”
The fund’s collapse has eased a major obstacle for GOP leadership in Congress. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told reporters Tuesday that he had informed Trump the fund was making it hard to advance legislation. “I told him that it was a difficult prospect right now, given our vote tallies,” Johnson said.
Republican unease had already stalled a $70 billion immigration bill last month, when House and Senate Republicans skipped town rather than hold a vote on funding for the Department of Homeland Security. The Senate on Wednesday voted to advance that legislation, a day after Blanche effectively killed the fund.
Trump also railed against the federal judge in Virginia who temporarily halted the fund from making payouts, calling him a “radical left judge.” He added, “We’ll see how that all works out.”
