In a serious though temporary setback for President Trump’s plan to hand out millions in federal funds to his political allies and friends, a federal judge in Virginia on Friday blocked any further steps to create and operate that highly unusual and deeply controversial project.
U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema of Alexandria, who is handling a wide-ranging lawsuit against the plan, issued a brief order seeking “to ensure that no funds are irreversibly disbursed” while the case goes forward. She noted that lawyers who filed the case had been unable at this point to get assurances from the Trump Administration that it would not transfer funds or start processing claims by those seeking payment.
The case was filed a week-ago in a 46-page challenge by two individuals, two legal or civil rights advocacy groups, and the city of New Haven, Conn., each claiming that they have been harmed or fear being harmed by the actions of the Trump Administration and yet would be barred from seeking any compensation under the Trump plan. They said the early plans for the project indicate that money will be paid only to those who can show that they were harmed by Democratic officials in government, with nothing for those who assert harms by Republican officials.
The planned “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” the lawsuit contended, violates federal laws as well as the Constitution. The case is aimed at the Justice Department, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, the Treasury Department, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the new Fund itself, and an assistant Attorney General.
Although Judge Brinkema said that she needed “full briefing” to help her “make a sound decision,” she said she had to take three immediate steps. She
· Barred Trump Administration agencies and officials from taking any further action to create the new Fund.
· Barred the Fund from operating, including forbidding transfer of any money from the Treasury to the Fund.
· Barred any consideration of any claims for payments, and barred any payments from the Fund.
Those orders will only be temporary, because the judge has not yet decided even the preliminary issues: did those who sued have a legal right to do so, and is the lawsuit properly timed. The answers to those questions will determine whether she can move forward on the challenge itself.
The judge set a schedule for filing of legal briefs, with that to be completed by June 10, and she scheduled a public hearing for June 12. The challengers had asked her to adopt a faster-paced schedule, but she opted to extend it by a few days, probably to help lawyers on both sides prepare better-quality briefs. There is no timetable for her to make rulings on any of the legal challenges in the case, but she clearly is moving at a fast pace.
The challengers are Andrew Floyd, a former federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C., who was fired because he had worked on criminal prosecutions of individuals who had taken part in the assault on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021; Jonathan Caravello, a California college professor who was arrested and detained for taking part in a protest against an immigration raid by the government; the city of New Haven, Conn., which has been sued by the government for being a welcoming city to immigrants; the National Abortion Federation, an abortion rights group, which says it fears “vigilante violence” from those who receive money from the Fund and will use it to finance attacks on clinics; and Common Cause, a liberal advocacy group joining the case as part of its overall monitoring of government operations.
Their constitutional claims are based on the First Amendment protection of free speech and the right to seek aid from the government; on the Fifth Amendment right to be treated equally by the government; on the 14th Amendment, which forbids the payment of any federal funds to those who have engaged in rebellion or insurrection; and on the general constitutional concept that branches of the federal government can only use powers belonging to that branch.
The creation and operation of the new Fund, the challengers assert, violates a series of federal laws by failing to obtain permission from Congress to create a new agency and to authorize payments of government money.
If they win the case, they want Judge Brinkema to take these actions:
· Declare the new plan to be both illegal and unconstitutional.
· Require that the Anti-Weaponization Fund be disbanded.
· Permanently bar any further action to set up and operate the Fund, including a ban on access to Treasury money, processing any claims, paying anyone any amount of money from the Treasury, appointing officials to operate the project, and setting up a similar project under a different name.
