A federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration's $1.8 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund" on Friday, ordering the DOJ to halt all operations while a lawsuit proceeds to trial. Eight days before the court stepped in, House Republicans voted to make themselves personally eligible to collect from the same fund they refused to restrict.
What the Judge Ordered
U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema of the Eastern District of Virginia entered the temporary block on Friday, May 29, after a January 6 prosecutor filed suit challenging the fund's legality. The order prohibits the DOJ from transferring any money to the fund, considering any claims submitted to it, or disbursing any funds from it until further order of the court. A hearing is scheduled for June 12.
The DOJ said it remains "extremely confident in the legality of the Anti-Weaponization Fund."
Where the $1.776 Billion Came From
The fund was created through a settlement of Trump's $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS, yielding a payout of $1.776 billion, one of the largest U.S. government lawsuit settlements on record. The money flows through the Judgment Fund, a permanent congressional appropriation created in 1956 to pay court-ordered damages against the federal government. That fund was not created to distribute public money to a sitting president's political allies at the discretion of a presidential appointee.
The DOJ manages the fund. A five-person commission appointed by the Attorney General decides who gets paid. No court approval is required for individual disbursements. No public disclosure is mandated.
"Every Republican present in the House Appropriations Committee voted to make THEMSELVES eligible to collect from Trump's $1.8 billion January 6th slush fund. I am not making this up." — Rep. Mike Levin (CA-49), May 21, 2026
Congress Votes to Cash In
On May 21, the House Appropriations Committee marked up a bill with no restrictions on the fund. Rep. Mike Levin (CA-49) introduced an amendment to bar federal elected officials from receiving any payment from the Judgment Fund unless a court specifically ordered it. Republicans on the committee voted the amendment down with no public explanation.
View on X: Rep. Levin on House Republicans voting to make themselves eligible for the fund
Under the fund's current design, January 6 insurrectionists who attacked Capitol Police officers are eligible claimants alongside the members of Congress who just declined to restrict it. Senate Republican leaders have expressed reservations, and Senate leadership delayed a vote on an ICE and Border Patrol funding package until June in part because of the fund controversy. The House Appropriations Committee, asked to put even a narrow guardrail on the fund, voted no.
Two Court Tracks Now Running
Judge Brinkema's order runs parallel to a second legal challenge. The judge who oversaw the original Trump-IRS settlement also launched an inquiry after 35 retired federal judges asked the court to reopen the case, arguing the settlement amounted to a "fraud on the court." Two independent federal judges are now reviewing the same fund from two different legal angles.
The June 12 hearing before Judge Brinkema will determine whether the temporary block converts to a preliminary injunction lasting through trial. The DOJ has not indicated whether it will seek to dissolve the order before then.
Sources
- Judge halts Trump 'anti-weaponization' fund after Jan. 6 prosecutor sues — NBC News, May 29, 2026
- Federal judge halts work on Trump's 'anti-weaponization fund' — CNN, May 29, 2026
- House Republicans Make Themselves Eligible for Trump's $1.8 Billion Slush Fund — Rep. Mike Levin official press release, May 21, 2026
- Federal judge temporarily blocks Trump's $1.8B 'anti-weaponization' fund — The Hill, May 29, 2026
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