President Donald Trump is moving to establish a $1.7 billion (£1.26bn) taxpayer-funded compensation fund that would pay political allies and individuals charged in connection with the 6 January 2021 Capitol attack. The arrangement is tied to Trumpdroppinghis $10 billion (£7.4bn) lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service, a deal that has not yet been officially announced.
The fund would draw money from the Treasury Department's Judgment Fund, a permanent appropriation used by the federal government to pay court judgments and settlements. Crucially, Congress would not need to separately approve the payment, raising immediate concerns among critics and some administration officials alike.
Under the proposed terms, a five-member commission would have total authority to hand out the $1.7 billion to anyone who claims they were harmed by the Biden administration's so-called 'weaponisation' of the legal system. That pool of potential recipients includes the nearly 1,600 individuals charged in connection with the Capitol attack, as well as entities associated with Trump himself.
What has drawn particular scrutiny is the structure of the commission. According to sources familiar with the matter cited by ABC News, Trump would have the authority to remove commission members without cause, and the body would be under no obligation to disclose its procedures or the identities of those who receive payments. The process, critics argue, is designed to operate with minimal public accountability.
Senator Elizabeth Warren did not hold back in her reaction. 'An insane level of corruption — even for Trump,' shewrote on X, describing the arrangement as 'a $1.7 billion slush fund for Trump's hand-picked stooges to hand money to January 6th insurrectionists and his political allies.'
An insane level of corruption—even for Trump.A $1.7 BILLION slush fund for Trump’s hand-picked stooges to hand money to January 6th insurrectionists and his political allies.Here’s the President’s priority as Americans sell their plasma to afford gas and groceries:https://t.co/wahV5OPEAj
The ethical questions surrounding the fund are not new, and Trump himself has acknowledged them. Speaking in the Oval Office in October, Trump said: 'It's awfully strange to make a decision where I'm paying myself.'
Despite that admission, the settlement talks have continued, accelerating in part due to legal pressure. US District Judge Kathleen Williams had questioned in a prior ruling whether Trump and the federal agencies he is suing are 'sufficiently adverse to each other,' writing: 'Although President Trump avers that he is bringing this lawsuit in his personal capacity, he is the sitting president and his named adversaries are entities whose decisions are subject to his direction.'
Virginia Canter, ethics chief counsel at the Democracy Defenders Fund and a former White House lawyer, said that the arrangement is 'just another way for President Trump to treat the American taxpayers' money as like a cash machine to serve his own personal interests.'
Opposition from Democratic lawmakers has been swift and pointed. Earlier this year, a group of House Democrats introduced legislation specifically aimed at banning Jan. 6 defendants from receiving any compensation from a fund of this kind, though that bill has not advanced through Congress.
Source: International Business Times UK
