DOJ pauses Trump's $1.8B 'anti-weaponization' fund after court order
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Tuesday, June 2, 2026
Good morning. Here’s what you need to know today.
U.S. Politics: The Justice Department said Monday it will comply with a federal court order pausing payouts from President Trump’s roughly $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund until June 12, even as DOJ said it disagrees with the ruling, according to the BBC.
World Politics: A Russian missile and drone barrage killed at least 10 people in Kyiv and Dnipro overnight and damaged residential buildings in eight Kyiv districts, according to the BBC.
Tech & Power: Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a civil lawsuit against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, accusing the company of hiding ChatGPT’s risks and endangering children, according to PBS NewsHour.
Today’s Focus
DOJ Pauses $1.8 Billion ‘Anti-Weaponization’ Fund After Court Order and GOP Pushback
The Justice Department said it will comply with a federal judge’s order temporarily blocking payouts from a fund that critics call a slush fund for Trump allies, as Senate Democrats moved to abolish it entirely.
The Justice Department said Monday it will comply with a federal court order temporarily halting disbursements from President Trump’s roughly $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund, a program designed to compensate people the administration says were politically targeted by past federal investigations.
A federal judge in Virginia ordered payments paused until June 12 while the court reviews legal challenges, according to PBS NewsHour. A second judge in Miami is reexamining the underlying IRS settlement that seeded the fund. DOJ said it “disagrees strongly” with the rulings but will abide by them, the BBC reported.
Hours earlier, Senate Democrats Mark Kelly, Adam Schiff and Elissa Slotkin introduced the Drain the Slush Fund Act, which would bar taxpayer payments to the president or others designated by the fund, according to The Hill.
Supporters, critics, and independent legal scholars: three views on whether this fund is lawful redress or a self-dealing slush fund.
Read the full analysis → DOJ Pauses $1.8 Billion ‘Anti-Weaponization’ Fund After Court Order and GOP Pushback
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