Two police officers who helped defend the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, sued to block the Trump administration’s almost $1.8 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund — one that the Jan. 6 rioters could benefit from.
The lawsuit, filed Wednesday, describes the pool of money as a “taxpayer-funded slush fund to finance the insurrectionists and paramilitary groups that commit violence in [President Trump’s] name.”
Former U.S. Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn and D.C. Metropolitan Police Officer Daniel Hodges argue that the fund will fund Jan. 6 rioters — a day after Mr. Blanche said that they could be eligible for a payout, as anyone who believes that they have been harmed by the government can apply.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Tuesday that anyone could apply, but insisted that Jan. 6 rioters weren’t automatically going to get payouts.
“Does it mean they’re going to get money? No,” he told Congress. “It just means they are allowed to apply.”
The police officers argue that the settlement on which the fund is built is “a corrupt sham.” The Justice Department established the money pool as part of a settlement agreement with Mr. Trump, resolving his lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service and Treasury Department regarding leaked tax records. Mr. Trump, his two eldest sons and the Trump Organization agreed to drop their billion-dollar lawsuit “in exchange” for the establishment of the fund.
The lawsuit argues that the purpose of the fund is to “provide the January 6 rioters, including the Proud Boys, with the remuneration they, the President, and the President’s allies all agree they are owed,” citing administrative officials’ comments.
It argues that the fund “endangers the lives and safety” of the plaintiffs by encouraging those who enacted violence to continue to do so and will directly finance the operations of rioters, paramilitaries and supporters who threatened their lives.
“And, most chillingly, the Fund will signal to past and potential future perpetrators of violence against Dunn and Hodges that they need not fear prosecution; to the contrary, they should expect to be rewarded,” the lawsuit says.
Mr. Dunn and Mr. Hodges said that they have been harassed by Jan. 6 rioters and have received death threats on a regular basis.
Mr. Trump pardoned around 1,500 people who were charged with Jan. 6-related crimes during the mass storming of the Capitol by Trump supporters to protest the certification of President Biden’s 2020 presidential election win. Over 140 police officers were injured.
The fund “encourages those who are harassing Dunn and Hodges, and sending them death threats, to up the ante,” it says.
