A judge temporarily blocks payments from Trump’s $1.8 billion “arms control” settlement fund

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from paying any claims through a new $1.776 billion settlement fund for allies of the Republican president who believe they were victims of an armed government.

U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Virginia, on Friday also blocked the government from moving forward with establishing the fund while a lawsuit challenging it is still pending.

The judge, nominated by Democratic President Bill Clinton, scheduled a hearing for June 12 to present arguments on whether to extend the order blocking payments from the Arms Control Fund. The government created the fund to resolve Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his tax returns.

The fund has created such a backlash since it was announced last week that Republicans even pressed acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on eligibility considerations and the possibility that even the violent rioters at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, would be free to seek compensation.

He watches: Senate Republicans break with Trump over Arms Control Fund concerns.

The Justice Department has not formed the five-member committee that will decide payment criteria, so no money has been paid or claims accepted yet.

Plaintiffs’ lawyers from the legal advocacy group Democracy Forward are seeking a court order halting implementation of the fund and preventing the Trump administration from making any payments from it. The federal lawsuit claims there is no legal basis or accountability behind the fund.