The ladies of “The View” on Monday marveled at President Donald Trump’s latest ploy to exploit the U.S. government for his own gain. In a settlement, Trump agreed to drop his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS under the condition that the Justice Department create a $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization fund” to compensate individuals who claim they were the “victims of lawfare” by the U.S. government. House Democrats slammed the fund, saying it would allow Trump to use taxpayer dollars to “reward allies, including the nearly
1,600 defendants convicted or charged in connection with the January 6th attack on the Capitol.” Panelist Alyssa Farah Griffin explained why the concept felt like peak hypocrisy to her, and reminded viewers of Trump’s long-abandoned campaign promise to crack down on corruption in Washington, D.C. “This is so extraordinary that he ran on draining the swamp, and this is the swampiest thing I can possibly imagine, is a slush fund for your allies!” said Griffin, a former Trump official. Panelist Sunny Hostin agreed, calling the
fund straight up “extortion.” Panelist Sara Haines raised the possibility of the money going to January 6 insurrectionists, whom Trump described as political “hostages” when he issued sweeping pardons of those convicted of participating in the attack on the U.S. Capitol. “If we’re going to talk about people who the government has been weaponized against them, what about the fact that they pardoned violent criminals who attacked cops and scaled the Capitol walls — all the victims of January 6th probably feel a little bit
like this is weaponized,” she said. In a press release announcing the fund, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said, “The machinery of government should never be weaponized against any American, and it is this Department’s intention to make right the wrongs that were previously done while ensuring this never happens again.” Neither the DOJ’s press statement nor the settlement agreement for Trump’s IRS suit outlines the criteria for eligibility to make claims. Trump himself feigned ignorance while talking to reporters on Monday afternoon, claiming, “I
know very little about it. I wasn’t involved in the creation of it and the negotiation.”
The View, Alyssa Farah Griffin, Sunny Hostin, Sara Haines, Trump, IRS lawsuit, anti-weaponization fund, Justice Department, Todd Blanche, House Democrats, January 6, lawfare, slush fund, extortion, pardons