Senate Republicans are opposing a permanent shutdown of President Donald Trump’s nearly $2 billion “anti-weaponization” fund. This stance persists despite significant criticism from within their party ranks. An amendment proposed by Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., which aimed to permanently end the fund and redirect it to the nation’s fraud fund, was struck down. While Senate Democrats dislike the “anti-weaponization” fund, diverting the money proved unacceptable to most.
A dozen Republicans supported the amendment, demonstrating widespread disapproval of the fund and any future plans for it. The amendment’s rejection might end the effort to permanently close the fund, following lengthy delays at the start of the Senate’s extensive voting session on the GOP’s nearly $70 billion immigration enforcement package.
Both parties have targeted Trump’s $2 billion fund as the ICE funding package approaches a critical point.
Sen. Thom Tillis expressed he wouldn’t back the upcoming budget reconciliation package if it included $1 billion for President Trump’s initiatives. The fund, introduced last month as part of a settlement between the Trump family and the Internal Revenue Service, faced criticism from Republicans concerned it lacked safeguards. They feared it could be accessed by those convicted of assaulting officers during the January 6 Capitol riot.
Despite assurances from Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche that the administration would abandon the fund, skepticism persists among Republicans. Trump expressed a different view in the Oval Office, stating he would consult lawyers about the fund’s future, remarking, “I’d have to ask the lawyers. I don’t know.”
Trump praised the fund, saying, “The weaponization fund, as far as I’m concerned, was a beautiful thing. I love it. I think it’s so important.” Tillis contended that if the administration wanted to end the fund, they should seize the opportunity to formalize it, noting, “Otherwise, you’re exposing every one of our members who are in cycle to having to deal with this between today and Election Day.”
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Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., criticized the fund and proposed an amendment with Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., to ensure it stays dormant. Nonetheless, Republicans argued the underlying bill did not address the fund directly and that it could be revisited if Trump attempts to revive it.
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., commented, “People say, ‘But, oh, Trump may someday again do the weaponization fund from his remarks yesterday.’ Well, then address it if he tries to do it if it’s unpopular. People can address it when it happens.”