The Justice Department backed off a court fight over the nearly $1.8 billion fund for alleged victims of unfair prosecution. GOP senators say a pause isn’t a promise.
Read more Los Angeles mayor faces a TV star and a former ally. See primary results live.
After the Trump administration signaled that it may back off a nearly $1.8 billion fund to compensate people who claim they were unfair political targets of investigation or prosecution, Republicans are trying to finally break loose President Donald Trump’s stalled agenda on Capitol Hill. But making that happen may require Trump to convince wary Republicans lawmakers that the fund is truly dead.
The Justice Department said Monday it would comply with a court order temporarily blocking the unpopular fund, a striking reversal from days earlier, when it vowed not to let judges’ “policy preferences” stand in its way.
But some Senate Republicans said the move was not enough — and they want to hear from the president himself.
“It’s pretty clear that the president has to say very explicitly that there’s not going to be a weaponization fund,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee.
For days, Senate Republicans have expressed alarm at Trump’s decision to set up the fund — in part because it could be used to compensate people who attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Republicans defied Trump by leaving Washington last month without passing legislation to fund immigration enforcement agencies due to concerns about the fund.
Read more Bethell fit to play for England in test series against NZ as McCullum calls for ‘refined’ Bazball
A federal judge barred the Justice Department on Friday from moving forward with the fund until at least June 12. Some Senate Republicans said the department’s commitment to abide by the ruling satisfied them — but other remain concerned.
“I have a lot of unanswered questions,” Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) told reporters. “It’s not enough for me to have the courts push back. I just want to make sure this thing doesn’t move forward in its current form.”
Republicans are working to pass legislation important to Trump that funds two agencies — Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Customs and Border Protection — for the next three years. Trump had asked Congress to pass the legislation by Monday, but Senate Republicans refused to pass the legislation last month until the administration addressed the controversy over the fund.
Senate Republicans plan to use a special process known as reconciliation to pass the bill without Democratic votes, but the party’s 53-47 majority in the chamber means they need the support of all but three Republican senators if every senator is voting.
Read more Andreeva powers into French Open semifinals and sets up Russia-Ukraine showdown
