The Daily Fuckup

A federal judge on June 12 extended an injunction that is stopping the Justice Department’s $1.776 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund and ordered top officials to file sworn declarations that the program will not be created or operated in any form. The order keeps the status quo in place while the court waits for written assurances from Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr. and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. ([democracyforward.org](https://democracyforward.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/189115193387.pdf))

The fund was announced by the Justice Department on May 18 as part of a settlement agreement in President Donald J. Trump v. Internal Revenue Service. The department said the arrangement came out of Trump’s lawsuit over the leak of his tax returns, and that the fund would be financed through the judgment fund. According to the department’s announcement, the program was meant to provide a process for claims from people who said they were harmed by government “weaponization” or “lawfare.” ([justice.gov](https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-anti-weaponization-fund))

Brinkema had already temporarily blocked the fund on May 29. Her June 12 order granted plaintiffs’ request for a temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction and said the defendants must file a declaration under penalty of perjury stating that they will not take any action to create or operate the fund and that it will not proceed “in any manner, or under any name.” If the declaration is not filed by June 19, the court said it will set a scheduling order and require a response from the government. ([democracyforward.org](https://democracyforward.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/189115193387.pdf))

The administration’s announcement drew immediate attention because it tied a large pool of federal money to a settlement in Trump’s personal and business tax-return case. The Justice Department said the fund would receive $1.776 billion and that any money left over when it ends would revert to the federal government. The same announcement said claims would be voluntary and that the fund would be subject to reporting and audit requirements. ([justice.gov](https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-anti-weaponization-fund))

The June 12 order does not decide the merits of the broader legal fight over the settlement or the fund’s legality. It does, however, leave the injunction in place until the court receives sworn assurances that the program will not go forward. ([democracyforward.org](https://democracyforward.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/189115193387.pdf))