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DOJ refuses sworn pledge
The Justice Department on Friday rebuffed U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema’s demand for sworn declarations that President Donald Trump’s anti-weaponization fund is dead, arguing the request raises “serious separation of powers concerns.”
Judge Brinkema had indefinitely blocked the nearly $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund last Friday and set a seven-day deadline for Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward to declare under penalty of perjury that it would not move forward “to avoid any further litigation.”
DOJ attorneys said they declined to offer that commitment in writing, asserting it should not be required to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a former federal prosecutor and others.
In a Friday filing, Andrew Block wrote that “Such declarations are unnecessary and the compelled testimony of senior officials from the Executive Branch implicates serious separation of powers concerns.”
Judge weighs future risk
Brinkema’s order in the Alexandria, Virginia case indicated that if the declarations were not filed, the lawsuit would proceed and the government would be required to file a responsive pleading by July 17.
The DOJ told the Washington Examiner that the administration has repeatedly stated the fund “is not going forward,” and argued that the judge’s demand was an attempt to require her to personally sign off on future settlements.
During a House Appropriations Committee hearing last month, Blanche testified that the fund was “not going forward, period,” and DOJ attorneys highlighted that statement in Friday’s filing.
Brinkema expressed skepticism at the hearing, saying, “When the president of the United States says he’s disappointed that something is not going forward,” that could indicate the proposal may “rear its head” again in the future.
Fund tied to settlements
The anti-weaponization fund was unveiled by the DOJ in May as part of a broader settlement arrangement involving Trump’s agreement to settle his lawsuit against the IRS related to the leak of his tax returns by an IRS contractor.
The proposal would have directed money from the Treasury Department’s Judgment Fund to compensate people who claimed they were improperly targeted by federal investigations during the Biden administration, and it faced criticism over who might benefit from the payouts.
The Hill reported that Blanche announced plans for the $1.776 billion compensation fund in mid-May following a settlement between the Trump family and the IRS, saying it would be authorized to issue formal apologies and payments to individuals who claim to have “suffered weaponization and lawfare” by the federal government.
Democracy Forward’s president and CEO Skye Perryman said it was “telling” that senior officials “continue to refuse to say under oath that the Slush Fund is dead and won’t operate in the future,” as the litigation over the fund’s status continues in federal court.
