Trump’s $1.776 billion ‘anti-weaponization’ fund leaves legal firestorm at feet of lawmakers
Key takeaways
- 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.
- 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.
Why this matters: political developments that affect policy direction and public trust.
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.