Two police officers who defended the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 sued President 
Donald Trump on Wednesday to dissolve a new $1.776bn "anti-weaponization" fund, alleging it is unconstitutional and likely to be used to compensate rioters who attacked them. The complaint, filed in US district court in Washington DC by retired Capitol officer Harry Dunn and DC Metropolitan officer Daniel Hodges, calls the fund "the most brazen act of presidential corruption this century," the Guardian reported. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent are also named as defendants.
What does the lawsuit argue? The complaint says the fund "encourages those who enacted violence in the president's name to continue to do so" and that the plaintiffs "already face credible threats of death and violence on regular basis," the Guardian reported. In the filing the officers describe their January 6 injuries — Hodges nearly crushed against a Capitol door, another officer threatened with his own gun, per the Al Jazeera account — and they seek a court order blocking any disbursement.
How did the fund come to exist? It was created last week as part of a settlement in which Trump and his sons dropped a $10bn lawsuit against the IRS, and the Justice Department permanently barred the agency from auditing the president, his sons or affiliated trusts, PBS NewsHour reported. At a May 19 Senate hearing Blanche declined to rule out payouts to January 6 rioters, saying decisions rest with commissioners he will appoint and Trump can remove at any time.
What are the legal prospects? Court challenges to the fund will be tough because executive control over discretionary settlement vehicles is broad, the Japan Times reported. Congressional Democrats have separately called for hearings on whether the fund violates appropriations law, in the France 24 account.
Figures referenced: Donald Trump. — JudgeMarket.
