Two officers who defended the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot sued Tuesday to block the Trump administration’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” money pool, describing it as a “taxpayer-funded slush fund to finance the insurrectionists and paramilitary groups” that they say committed violence in President Donald Trump’s name.
The lawsuit — filed by former Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn and Metropolitan Police Department Officer Daniel Hodges — argues the fund is illegal and the settlement on which it is premised “a corrupt sham.”
Trump, his two elder sons and the Trump Organization filed a $10 billion suit against the IRS over the leak of his tax returns, but agreed to drop the suit “in exchange” for the establishment of the fund. Those who believe they have been harmed by the government can apply for money.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Tuesday that anyone could apply, but insisted that Jan. 6 rioters weren’t automatically going to be paid out.
“Does it mean they’re going to get money? No,” he said. “It just means they are allowed to apply.”
There will be five commissioners, chosen by Blanche, who will dole out money. The commissioners haven’t been announced.
It’s not clear how the Justice Department will determine how to hand out the money, and the process will be largely shielded from public scrutiny, unlike a civil lawsuit that plays out in open court.
Dunn and Hodges, who say they have been harassed by Jan. 6 rioters and have received death threats after they spoke out publicly about their injuries and the violence of the riot, argue in their lawsuit that the creation of the fund only encourages violence to continue and might mean the threats against them grow.
They argue the money could “directly finance the violent operations of rioters, paramilitaries, and their supporters” who threatened their lives.
Citing comments from Trump, Blanche, Vice President JD Vance and Trump administration official Ed Martin, the lawsuit argues that “the purpose of the Anti-Weaponization Fund is obvious: to provide the January 6 rioters, including the Proud Boys, with the remuneration they, the President, and the President’s allies all agree they are owed.”
Thousands of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in a failed effort to stop the certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s win on Jan. 6, 2021. More than 140 police officers were injured in the melee.
About 1,500 people were eventually charged. On his first day back in office, Trump pardoned the majority, while erasing punishments for a handful of others.
Dunn and Hodges say the fund proves that those who carried out violence in Trump’s name haven’t just avoided punishment, but they’ve also been rewarded.
Brendan Ballou, a former federal prosecutor who worked on Jan. 6-related cases, filed the lawsuit on behalf of the officers.
He said in a statement that if it was allowed to continue, “it will fund insurrectionists, militias, and paramilitaries that are loyal to the president but unaccountable to the rule of law.”
“To protect their safety and our democracy, our clients are suing to stop that from happening,” he said.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.
