$1.8B Fund Could Pay Jan 6 Rioters     05/20 06:10

   

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on Tuesday wouldn't 
rule out the possibility that people who carried out violence during the Jan. 
6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol will be considered for payouts from a new 
$1.776 billion fund to pay individuals who believe they were targeted 
politically.

   Pressed during a Congressional hearing over whether those who assaulted 
police officers would be eligible for compensation from the "Anti-Weaponization 
Fund," Blanche responded that all people can apply if "they believe they were a 
victim of weaponization." The acting attorney general also refused to say 
whether he would direct those responsible for deciding who receives payments -- 
a commission whose members he is tasked with appointing -- to restrict funds to 
those convicted of violence.

   "What I will commit to is making sure that the commissioners are effectively 
doing their jobs, and that includes setting guidelines as you're describing," 
Blanche told Sen. Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat. The decisions on payouts 
will be made a five-member commission appointed by the attorney general.

   Appearing before Congress for the first time since taking the reins of the 
Justice Department last month, Blanche was peppered with questions about the 
fund announced on Monday to compensate those who believe they were mistreated 
by prior administrations' Justice Department. Blanche said the fund was 
"unusual" but not unprecedented, adding that those who benefit will not be 
limited to Republicans or to people who were investigated or prosecuted by the 
Biden administration. At one point, Blanche said President Joe Biden's son, 
Hunter -- who faced gun and tax prosecutions under his father's administration 
-- could also apply.

   Blanche defends $1.8 billion fund

   Tuesday's hearing was meant to address the Trump administration's budget 
request for the Justice Department but quickly delved into other controversies 
that have escalated concerns about the erosion of the law enforcement agency's 
tradition of independence from the White House. Blanche defended the creation 
of the fund without any acknowledgment that the Trump administration has 
pursued investigations of Trump's political opponents, sparking criticism that 
the department is being weaponized in precisely the same way they allege it was 
under Biden's administration to prosecute Trump.

   In the weeks since assuming control of the Justice Department after Pam 
Bondi's firing, Blanche has moved aggressively to advance the president's 
priorities -- pushing forward cases against Trump's political foes, cracking 
down on leaks to media outlets and establishing the new fund to resolve Trump's 
$10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his 
tax returns.

   Democrats described it as an illegal abuse of power designed to line the 
pockets of Trump supporters with taxpayer dollars. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, the 
top Democrat on the Senate appropriations subcommittee holding the hearing, 
blasted the move as a "pure theft of public funds."

   "Rewarding individuals who committed crimes is obscene," the Maryland 
Democrat said. "Every American can see through this illegal, corrupt, 
self-dealing scheme."

   The fund is in keeping with Trump's long-running claims that the Justice 
Department during the Biden administration was weaponized against him, even 
though then-President Biden himself was investigated during that time and his 
son was prosecuted. Merrick Garland, who served as attorney general during the 
Biden administration, has repeatedly denied allegations of politicization and 
has said his decisions followed facts, the evidence and the law.

   Trump administration has been rewriting the history of Jan. 6

   The mere possibility that violent rioters at the Capitol could be considered 
for payouts is consistent with a Trump administration pattern of rewriting the 
dark history of Jan. 6, a trend that began when the president pardoned and 
commuted the prison sentences of the participants in the melee and that 
continued with the Justice Department firing some prosecutors who put them 
behind bars.

   Under questioning from Merkley, Blanche said that he "will definitely 
encourage the commission" responsible for deciding on the payouts to "take 
everything into account." But when asked whether he believes those convicted of 
violence should be entitled to compensation, Blanche said: "My feelings don't 
matter."

   When Merkley suggested that Trump was using the Justice Department to target 
his political enemies, Blanche replied that this was precisely the sort of 
"disgusting" behavior of the Biden administration that the fund was meant to 
address.

   "That is completely inappropriate and wrong," Merkley said. "There is no 
comparison to the absolute fair minded pursuit of justice under the previous 
administration, and this administration's pursuit of an enemies list."

   Questions over the meaning of 'weaponization'

   In announcing the fund Monday, the Trump administration did not name 
specific individuals who might stand to benefit from it. The money itself would 
come from the federal judgment fund, which pays out court judgments and 
compromise settlements of lawsuits against the government.

   Blanche told lawmakers that the Justice Department is committed to "full 
transparency" in providing public information about beneficiaries of the new 
fund.

   "It's not limited to Republicans. It's not limited to Democrats. It's not 
limited to January 6th defendants. It's limited only by the term 
weaponization," Blanche said, though the administration has not said how it 
will define "weaponization."

   Meanwhile, there were signs of discomfort about the fund even among some 
Republican members of Congress. Senate Majority Leader John Thune told 
reporters that he's "not a big fan," adding that he isn't sure how the 
administration intends to use it, but doesn't "see a purpose for that."

   Thune's comments come after Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, who lost reelection 
in a GOP primary on Saturday, called it a "slush fund."

   "We are a nation of laws," Cassidy said. "You can't just make up things."