US judge indefinitely blocks Trump’s ‘anti-weaponisation’ fund

UNCERTAINTY OVER PLAN’S STATUS

Last week, Blanche told lawmakers the Trump administration was not moving forward with the plan, which critics have called a slush fund. But he refused to make that commitment in writing when he was asked to do so by Democratic lawmakers, and Trump has repeatedly expressed his support for the concept of the fund, prompting questions as to whether the administration was actually abandoning the fund.

Brinkema cited Trump’s public statements in recent days supporting the concept of the fund as evidence that the administration may still be looking to proceed with the plan in some fashion.

At a court hearing on Friday, Justice Department lawyer Andrew Block said the plaintiffs’ claims were too speculative and urged the judge not to issue an order that “rests on hypotheticals.”

Block also asked the judge to credit statements from Blanche to Congress and from Justice Department lawyers in court filings that the fund would not proceed.

Reuters reported earlier on Friday that Trump allies were training their focus on a possibly more viable path to pay supporters who claim they are victims of government abuse.

Brinkema pushed Block on why Blanche has not formally rescinded the order setting up the fund, echoing a question Block heard from a different federal judge in a related case on Wednesday.

On Friday, Block said he did not know, repeating the same answer he gave on Wednesday. Brinkema replied: “There’s a huge gap in the record if you don’t have the answer to that question.”