Why Trump’s $1.8 Billion Fund Is So Controversial: Explainer

The US Justice Department on May 18 struck a deal with President Donald Trump to create a $1.77 billion legal fund to pay alleged victims of government “weaponization,” an unusual agreement that could result in millions of dollars in taxpayer money being doled out to Trump’s allies and supporters.

The fund is part of a settlement in Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service, filed in January, over a 2019 leak of his tax information to the New York Times. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has said Trump will not get a payout from the fund. Even so, ...