The Daily Fuckup

Donald Trump’s lawyers asked a federal judge on April 17, 2026, to put his $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department on hold for 90 days while the sides continue settlement talks. The filing says the pause would give the parties time to explore a resolution and would not prejudice either side.

The case was filed on January 29, 2026, by Trump, two of his sons and the Trump Organization. It accuses federal tax officials of failing to prevent the unauthorized release of tax information to news outlets over a period that ran from 2018 to 2020. A federal court brief filed in February by Public Citizen and CREW, which sought to weigh in on the case, argued that the lawsuit raises constitutional and ethical problems because a sitting president appears on both sides of the dispute and because the Justice Department is responsible for defending the government while remaining answerable to the president.

The new stay request does not resolve any of that. It just extends the oddest part of the case: the president is pressing a personal damages claim against agencies in his own executive branch, while his lawyers and government lawyers test whether a deal is possible. Senate Finance Committee Democrats have already asked Treasury and Justice officials whether they plan to defend taxpayers or agree to a settlement that would pay Trump from public funds.

The motion now puts the court in a familiar but uncomfortable position: deciding whether to slow down a case that mixes personal grievance, executive power and the prospect of a taxpayer-funded payout.