Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche issued an order Sunday evening formally rescinding plans to create a $1.8 billion fund meant to compensate allies of President Trump — a move that came after weeks of negotiations with Republican senators threatening to block his confirmation.
The order came after Sens. Thom Tillis and John Cornyn refused to vote for Blanche as the full-time attorney general unless it was put in writing that Trump would no longer pursue the “anti-weaponization” fund. The fund, announced in May as part of a settlement to resolve a lawsuit brought by Trump against the IRS and Treasury Department, was meant to pay people who claimed they were politically persecuted.
“The Attorney General’s May 18, 2026 Order establishing the Anti-Weaponization Fund is rescinded and shall have no force or effect,” the order states.
What the Order Does
The document released by Blanche also limits the scope of another provision of the settlement that provided broad immunity for Trump and members of his family from tax audits. It clarifies that the tax audit immunity agreement “applies only retroactively” to claims open at the time of the settlement and does not protect the president from examination of future tax filings.
“For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in this Order is intended to contradict or otherwise be contrary to prior representations by the Department of Justice that the Fund is not operative. No Members were appointed; no funds were transferred; no process for receiving claims was established; no claims were paid,” the order states.
The Political Pressure
Tillis and Cornyn have refused to vote for Blanche as the full-time attorney general unless he put the order in writing. After the Thursday vote postponement, Trump threatened to pull Blanche’s nomination and resubmit it after Cornyn and Tillis leave office next year.
“I will keep Todd as Acting A.G., and push hard to get the Anti-Weaponization Bill, which takes care of those who have been so badly treated by the Crooked Joe Biden Administration,” Trump wrote Saturday on Truth Social.
Tillis responded: “Despite comments as late as yesterday that the fund is dead, President Trump clearly intends to resurrect the payout pot for punks either by inappropriately establishing another bogus fund or pushing Congress to vote for a bill that the majority of Republicans in the Senate would be against.”
Cornyn and Tillis said on Monday that they will vote to advance Blanche’s nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee given his commitments on the fund and the immunity provisions.
The Legal Questions
A former Justice Department lawyer said Blanche’s unilateral rescission of the creation of the “anti-weaponization” fund does not have any legal effect and does not prevent the fund from being revived in the future.
“I think this is all for political show. He can withdraw it the day he enters office. He could issue a new order. The sons could sue to enforce it and they can settle a new lawsuit,” said Rupa Bhattacharyya, a former Justice Department attorney who now serves as legal director for the Georgetown University Law Center’s Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection.
“There are all sorts of ways this can come back,” she told CBS News.
The Fund’s History
The “anti-weaponization” fund was announced in May as part of a settlement to resolve a lawsuit brought by Trump against the IRS and Treasury Department. It was meant to pay people who claimed they were politically persecuted. The fund was temporarily blocked by a federal judge in May amid a series of lawsuits. The Justice Department said in June court filings that the fund was not going forward.
Democrats have called it a “slush fund.” A number of Republicans besides Cornyn and Tillis have previously stated their opposition to the fund.
The Confirmation Fight
Blanche, who served as Trump’s defense lawyer in his criminal cases, entered the Justice Department last year as deputy attorney general. He was elevated to the top post after Pam Bondi was fired in April by the president, who was frustrated by her failure to successfully prosecute his political enemies.
Though Blanche insisted he wasn’t auditioning for the permanent job, he has moved aggressively to pursue the Trump administration’s agenda and accelerate investigations into the president’s perceived foes.
At his confirmation hearing earlier this month, Blanche insisted the fund was “dead.” “No, the settlement fund is just not moving forward. There’s no modification. It never started. No money went from the Treasury to any other account,” he told Cornyn.
A Senate Judiciary Committee vote on Blanche was scheduled for Tuesday after being delayed last week.
The Bottom Line
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche rescinded Trump’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund after Republican senators threatened to block his confirmation. The order also limits the scope of tax audit immunity for Trump and his family. Legal experts say the rescission may not prevent the fund from being revived in the future. Trump threatened to push for the fund if Blanche is not confirmed. Cornyn and Tillis said they will now support Blanche’s nomination.
