Bill Cassidy signs brief calling ‘weaponization’ funds a ‘serious threat’

Louisiana Republican Senator Bill Cassidy signed an amicus brief calling President Donald Trump’s “weaponization” funds a “serious threat” to Congress and the constitutional order.

amicus brief Cassidy and Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J. A case challenging the fund was filed through a court in Virginia on Wednesday. Cassidy lost a runoff in Louisiana last month amid a Trump-backed primary challenge, and Congress is considering an amendment to a budget reconciliation bill that could eliminate the “Lawfare” fund entirely.

Cassidy’s inclusion in the brief is a window into broader opposition to the fund from Senate Republicans, who rarely back Trump because of the potential political consequences. It also highlights how Cassidy, who now faces no re-election, could complicate future votes in the Senate.

The brief argues that the court, which temporarily halted the funds in May, should maintain its stay. The senators argued that the fund “represents an immediate and serious threat to our constitutional order and the authority of Congress.”

The senators said, “The existence of the fund attacks the authority of Congress and the core of our constitutional order.”

Lawmakers say the fund infringes on “spending, appropriations and appointments” by overstepping Congress’ authority over the federal budget. They argue that it could also financially compensate convicted violent rioters who tried to disrupt the certification of former President Joe Biden’s election victory by storming the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

The brief reads, “To knowingly use public funds to compensate these criminals, in violation of the Constitution and laws of this country, is to use the machinery of democratic government to subsidize an attack on the most basic processes of that government.”

The fund was started as part of the settlement of a $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service for the leak of Trump’s tax returns. In exchange for dropping that case, the Justice Department set up a $1.8 billion legal relief fund to compensate victims in what the administration calls a “legal settlement.”

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanch testified before Congress on Tuesday that the Justice Department has permanently abandoned the weaponization funding and will not proceed with it regardless of the outcome in court. However, according to the original agreement creating the fund, Trump and his family are protected from audits and other tax enforcement actions regarding tax returns filed before the out-of-court settlement of his lawsuit last month.

And Trump, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday, said he didn’t know whether it was “dead” or “paused,” adding that he would have to “ask the lawyers.”

Critics have argued that the DOJ’s initial statement that it would not move forward with the fund left it unclear whether the department had abandoned any plans for the fund, and was eyeing a more permanent solution.

“The Court should uphold the injunction against the implementation of the Anti-Arms Fund and ultimately enter judgment for the plaintiffs in this case,” the senators said in their brief.