United States President Donald Trump will reportedly drop his $1.8bn \u201canti-weaponisation\u201d fund amid congressional backlash, including from fellow Republicans.<\/p>\n
On Monday, US media indicated the fund would be paused, though the White House has yet to publicly confirm the reports.<\/p>\n
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Axios was the first to break the news, citing an unnamed senior official. \u201cIt\u2019s dead for now,\u201d the official told the news outlet.<\/p>\n
The \u201canti-weaponisation\u201d fund was announced last month as part of a settlement between Trump and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), part of his executive branch.<\/p>\n
According to documents released by the Department of Justice, the $1.8bn was slated to serve as payment for victims of \u201clawfare\u201d and government \u201cweaponisation\u201d.<\/p>\n
Trump himself has repeatedly painted himself as such a victim, framing himself and his allies as targets of unfair government prosecution.<\/p>\n
Monday\u2019s announcement came after Trump met with House Speaker Mike Johnson over Republican concerns about the \u201canti-weaponisation\u201d fund.<\/p>\n
Senate Majority Leader John Thune has likewise called for the fund to be dropped, as he seeks to rally Republicans to pass a $72bn immigration enforcement funding bill.<\/p>\n
Still, Democrats on the Senate floor argued that the reported pause did not go far enough.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe press reports that Trump says he will table his $2bn MAGA slush fund,\u201d Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said, using the acronym for Trump\u2019s \u201cMake America Great Again\u201d movement.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut a promise from Trump is worthless. If Trump and Republicans are truly abandoning this corrupt scheme, they should have zero problem banning it in law.\u201d<\/p>\n
Schumer pledged to advance legislation to \u201censure no president can ever do this again\u201d.<\/p>\n
Inside the controversy<\/p>\n
Plans for the $1.8bn \u201canti-weaponisation\u201d fund were revealed on May 18, shortly after Trump agreed to drop his case against the IRS.<\/p>\n
Trump had filed the lawsuit in January, alleging that the IRS was responsible for the leak of his tax returns, information from which was published in The New York Times and ProPublica, starting in 2020.<\/p>\n
The Republican leader sought $10bn in damages, though critics argued that the lawsuit faced an uphill battle.<\/p>\n
There were questions about whether it fell within the statute of limitations and whether the IRS could be held responsible for the actions of an outside contractor, Charles Littlejohn, who was convicted of leaking the documents.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit and the subsequent settlement also raised outcry over apparent conflicts of interest, since Trump was in charge of the IRS and the Department of Justice, which represented the tax agency in court hearings.<\/p>\n
After announcing the lawsuit\u2019s settlement in May, the Department of Justice revealed its plans to set up the fund.<\/p>\n
An additional settlement document also was made public, saying Trump and his family would have lifelong immunity from any IRS audits.<\/p>\n
While the Department of Justice had yet to outline who would be eligible for the \u201canti-weaponisation\u201d fund, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has declined to rule out Trump supporters involved in the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.<\/p>\n
Legal challenges<\/p>\n
The \u201canti-weaponisation\u201d fund has since been criticised as a piggy bank for payouts to Trump allies, and it has faced both legal and congressional pushback.<\/p>\n
At least three separate lawsuits have been filed to stop the \u201canti-weaponisation\u201d fund, including one filed by police officers injured in the January 6 attack.<\/p>\n