President Trump’s Justice Department set out to do something no administration had tried before: build a formal process to compensate Americans hit by government weaponization and lawfare.
A federal judge in Virginia just put that effort on ice.
U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema, a Bill Clinton appointee, entered an order on May 29, 2026 enjoining the DOJ and Treasury from creating or operating the Anti-Weaponization Fund while a legal challenge gets briefed.
That means no transferring money into the fund, no considering claims, and no disbursing a single dollar until the court rules.
The hearing is reset for Friday, June 12, 2026 at 10:00 a.m.
The order landed in Eastern District of Virginia case 1:26-cv-1399, brought by Andrew Floyd and other plaintiffs against the Department of Justice and other defendants.
The anti-Trump crowd online wasted no time celebrating the freeze.
Judge Leonie Brinkema in EDVA has enjoined Trump’s 1776 slush fund from going into operation for now. pic.twitter.com/SSxLsu50RT
— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) May 29, 2026
The court order says:
Before the Court is plaintiffs’ Expedited Motion for Briefing Schedule (“Expedited Motion”), which requests an expedited briefing and hearing schedule for its pending Motion for Temporary Restraining Order, Or in the Alternative, a Preliminary Injunction with Expedited Briefing and for a Stay Under 5 U.S.C. § 705 (“Motion”).
Defendants oppose this Motion, requesting additional time to respond. Because full briefing of the issue will enhance the ability of the Court to make a sound decision, plaintiffs’ Expedited Motion, [Dkt. No. 30], is DENIED and defendants’ request for additional time is GRANTED; however, to ensure that no funds are irreversibly disbursed from the Anti-Weaponization Fund (hereinafter, “Fund”) while plaintiffs’ Motion is pending, it is hereby
ORDERED that defendants be and are ENJOINED from taking any further action pursuant to the creation or operation of the Anti-Weaponization Fund, which includes the transferring of money to the Fund; the consideration of any claims submitted to the Fund; and the disbursing of any funds from the Fund; and it is further
ORDERED that defendants file their Opposition to plaintiffs’ Motion by close of business on Friday, June 5, 2026; and it is further
ORDERED that plaintiffs file their Reply by close of business on Wednesday, June 10, 2026; and it is further
ADVERTISEMENTORDERED that the hearing on plaintiffs’ Motion currently noticed for Friday, June 5, 2026, at 10:00 am be and is RESET to Friday, June 12, 2026 at 10:00 am.
So the fund is frozen, not killed.
Brinkema gave both sides a briefing calendar and set the real fight for June 12.
The DOJ announced the fund on May 18, 2026 as part of the settlement in President Donald J. Trump v. Internal Revenue Service.
That case grew out of the leak of more than 400,000 tax returns, including the Trump family’s, by a bad actor inside the IRS.
The Justice Department said:
Part of settlement agreement in President Donald J. Trump v. Internal Revenue Service
The U.S. Department of Justice today announced that as a part of the settlement agreement in President Donald J. Trump v. Internal Revenue Service, the Attorney General established “The Anti-Weaponization Fund” to provide a systematic process to hear and redress claims of others who suffered weaponization and lawfare.
ADVERTISEMENTPer the settlement, plaintiffs will receive a formal apology but no monetary payment or damages of any kind.
They have agreed, in exchange for the creation of this fund, to drop their pending lawsuit with prejudice, and also withdraw two administrative claims including for damages resulting from the unlawful raid of Mar-a-Lago and the Russia-collusion hoax.
“The machinery of government should never be weaponized against any American, and it is this Department’s intention to make right the wrongs that were previously done while ensuring this never happens again,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “As part of this settlement, we are setting up a lawful process for victims of lawfare and weaponization to be heard and seek redress.”
The Fund will have the power to issue formal apologies and monetary relief owed to claimants.
ADVERTISEMENTSubmission of a claim is voluntary. There are no partisan requirements to file a claim.
Any money left when the Fund ceases operations will revert to the Federal Government.
The Fund will receive $1.776 billion and will come from the judgment fund, which is a perpetual appropriation allowing DOJ to settle and pay cases.
Note who walks away with nothing.
President Trump, President Trump Jr., Eric Trump, and the Trump Organization get a formal apology and zero dollars in damages.
The $1.776 billion was set aside to redress other Americans, drawn from the judgment fund, with anything left over reverting to the federal government when the fund stops processing claims no later than December 1, 2028.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made the administration’s case plainly.
@SecScottBessent on the Anti-Weaponization Fund – “@POTUS Trump is a great American who has endured more than 10 years nonstop harassment and weaponization from federal and state government actors. A bad actor at the IRS leaked more than 400,000 tax returns, including the Trump… pic.twitter.com/rAQhRFsAD1
— liten drage (@DrageLiten) May 28, 2026
The fight now moves to June 12, when Brinkema decides whether the freeze holds.
The administration’s plan to give weaponization victims a real path to redress is still on the table, and the DOJ still has to defend it in court.
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