Judge says lawsuit against Trump DOJ 'anti-weaponization' fund will proceed

Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks at a press conference at the Department of Justice on May 4, 2026 in Washington, DC. Kevin Dietsch | Getty Images A federal judge on Thursday said a lawsuit challenging the Department of Justice's creation of a $1.8 billion " anti-weaponization" fund will proceed, citing the DOJ's refusal to confirm in writing to her that the fund is dead. Judge Leonie Brinkema, in an order in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Virginia, said that if the DOJ had given her a "short, written declaration under the penalty of perjury" that the fund was dead, that would have been enough to dismiss the suit as moot. Brinkema said that acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's refusal to rescind his May 18 memo that set up the structure of the fund, as well as his and Presiden t Donald Trump 's continued interest in compensating purported victims of DOJ overreach, "all support this conclusion" that the lawsuit is not moot. Blanche testified to a House committee on June 2 that the fund is not going forward after sharp criticism of it by Republican and Democratic lawmakers. DOJ lawyers have pointed to that statement in arguing to Brinkema and another federal judge that it is sufficient to dismiss suits challenging the fund. …