The attorney general will select the person to spend money from the fund, and the president can remove that person, according to the Justice Department.
President Trump doesn’t consider economic concerns in Iran talks
President Donald Trump told reporters that the economic situation of Americans is not factored into his decisions regarding Iran.
The Justice Department announced it will provide $1.776 billion to “victims of legal battles and weapons charges” as part of a $10 billion settlement of a lawsuit brought by President Donald Trump and his family against the Internal Revenue Service.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Trump’s former personal lawyer, said in announcing the fund, which appears to be aimed at benefiting Trump’s political allies with taxpayer dollars, that the government “should never be weaponized” and that the Justice Department aims to “right the wrongs that have been done in the past.”
News of the agreement immediately sparked fierce ethical objections from Congressional Democrats.
Sen. Mark Warren (D-Va.) posted on social media: “It’s official. Mr. Trump has dropped his lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service to obtain a $1.8 billion slush fund to pay his political allies. Your tax dollars will be a gift to his friends.”
“If my Republican colleagues respect the Constitution and the authority of Congress, they will join us in stopping this class corruption,” Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Maryland, posted on social media.
Mr. Raskin is one of several leaders supporting legislation that would impose limits on presidents and vice presidents who seek to collect damages from the governments they run.
Why did Trump file a lawsuit against the IRS?
The lawsuit against the IRS was filed in January by Trump, his two oldest sons, Don Jr. and Eric, and the Trump Organization, which includes many of Trump’s businesses. Contractor Charles Littlejohn was sentenced to five years in prison in 2024 for disclosing thousands of tax returns, including those of Trump and many other wealthy individuals.
Trump and the other plaintiffs argued in their lawsuit that the IRS embarrassed them and “unreasonably harmed” the companies’ reputations by failing to establish adequate review and oversight systems to prevent the information from being released.
Trump and his family said in a May 18 court filing that they do not need court permission to drop the case because the IRS has not yet taken any major action. They made no mention of reconciliation.
However, 93 members of Congress filed a motion on the matter on May 18, prior to the formal announcement of the $1.776 billion fund, citing legal limitations on the Justice Department’s ability to settle. They argued that the court should consider the risk that President Trump could use the lawsuit to “siphon billions of taxpayer dollars into the pockets of the president, his family, and his allies.”
Who will receive money from the fund?
The Justice Department’s announcement said there were no partisan requirements for filing a claim, but did not specify who specifically would receive money from the fund.
But the Justice Department has made clear that the fund will be strictly controlled by the president and attorney general.
The attorney general will select five members to administer the fund, one of whom will be chosen “in consultation with Congressional leadership.” The president may dismiss any member of the committee he wishes, and a successor will be selected in the same manner as the person who was dismissed.
President Trump has repeatedly offered insight into what types of cases he believes will involve “laws” and “use of arms” under the Biden administration.
These include two federal lawsuits filed against Trump and others for allegedly mishandling classified documents and illegally trying to overturn the 2020 election results. These cases were brought by a special prosecutor appointed with greater than usual independence from Justice Department leadership. A separate special counsel also filed a criminal case against Hunter, the son of former President Joe Biden.
President Trump also described the more than 1,500 lawsuits filed against his supporters for allegedly committing crimes during the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021 as “an act of law.” Trump pardoned all of these people on his first day back in office in 2025. Most of them already had criminal convictions.
It is not clear whether the identities of the recipients of the funds will be made public.
The attorney general will receive quarterly reports on who received the funds, and the fund must “take steps to protect personal information and avoid fraud,” the announcement said. The Attorney General may order an audit of the Fund.
The fund is scheduled to stop processing claims about a month after the end of Trump’s current presidential term.
Trump, his two oldest sons, and the Trump Organization will not receive any money as part of the settlement, the Justice Department said.
Trump has been accused of weaponizing the current Justice Department. On social media, he called for criminal charges against specific targets, including former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and California Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff. The Justice Department has repeatedly tried to bring charges against Comey and James and has investigated Schiff.
(This story has been updated to add new information.)
