President Donald Trump is reportedly dropping his effort to get Congress to sign off on creating a $1.8 billion slush fund for political allies amid furious public backlash.
A source described as a senior Trump administration official told Axios on Monday that the fund is “dead for now” after two federal judges last week weighed in against it, with one blocking any funds from being dispersed.
One source told Axios that the fund—which was set up to pay out allies who were allegedly unfairly prosecuted during former President Joe Biden’s tenure, including potentially hundreds of rioters who violently stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021—had “become a distraction” that was threatening the president’s broader legislative agenda.
“The president believes government was weaponized against people—it wasn’t just him,” the source claimed. “But this isn’t the time and vehicle for it.”
According to NOTUS politics reporter Reese Gorman, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) “helped convince” Trump to drop the fund for now during a conversation on Monday.
“The fund received significant backlash from Hill Republicans,” reported Gorman, “and a number of House Republicans were looking for ways to stop this fund from happening.”
The decision to drop the fund came as Democratic lawmakers have been lining legislation and amendments to derail it.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said on Monday that his caucus wasn’t satisfied just with killing the current Trump slush fund, but wanted to bar him from trying to create another one in the future.
“If Trump and Republicans are truly abandoning this corrupt scheme, they should have zero problem banning it in law,” Schumer wrote in a social media post. “This week, Senate Democrats will push legislation to ban this slush fund and ensure no president can ever do this again. Trump’s word is nowhere near enough.”
Schumer’s comments were echoed by Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), who also cast doubt on whether Trump had truly dropped his scheme.
“I don’t trust Trump’s word, and neither do the American people,” wrote Coons. “I’m looking forward to working with my Senate Democratic colleagues to permanently ban this slush fund. If Republicans in Congress are as opposed to this fund as they claim, they should have no problem joining us.”
The press office of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a likely 2028 presidential candidate who last week proposed a 100% tax on any California residents who received money from the Trump fund, celebrated its apparent demise.
“Days after Gavin Newsom challenged Trump’s J6 criminal slush fund and proposed a 100% tax on profits, Axios reports Trump pulled the plug,” the press office wrote. “Bullies fold when you hit back!”
Sens. Elisa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), and Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) on Monday introduced a new bill called the “Drain the Slush Fund Act,” which would bar taxpayer money from being paid to the “president, his associates, individuals convicted of crimes, or those involved in the January 6, 2021 insurrection.”
In announcing the legislation, Slotkin said the fund was the latest example of Trump using the government “as a piggy bank for himself and his allies.”
“This so-called… anti-weaponization fund is an unprecedented misuse of taxpayer money, and it must be stopped,” said Slotkin. “Our bill does just that. Democrats, Republicans, and Independents are crying out for the president to focus on the economy and lowering their costs.”
In the House of Representatives, Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) teamed with Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) introduced similar legislation aimed at blocking the fund.
“Congress must call out what we know is morally wrong,” Suozzi wrote in a social media post announcing the legislation. “The checks and balances of our democracy and the will of the American public hold us accountable to that standard.”
Lisa Gilbert, co-president of Public Citizen, said that the reported decision to drop the fund was good news, but warned against overlooking other toxic policies being pushed by the president and his GOP allies in a new budget reconciliation package.
“As important as taking out this disgusting policy is,” said Gilbert, “we must not let it be an excuse to green light the massive increases to [US Immigration and Customs Enforcement] funding embedded in the reconciliation bill.”
Legal advocacy group Democracy Forward, which has filed lawsuits aimed at blocking the fund’s implementation, said it would continue pressing its case until it was sure that the president’s plan was truly dead.
“Until the administration fully abandons the scheme, it’s beyond dispute that it will not recur, and our clients’ harm is remedied, we will be in court challenging it,” said Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward. “We look forward to the government’s response to the courts and to our filings, and to prevailing on behalf of our clients.”
From Common Dreams via This RSS Feed.