Top Republican: Trump's billion-dollar fund scrapped

TT

Published 21.55

 

Senate Majority Leader, Republican John Thune. Archive photo. Photo: Alex Brandon/AP/TT

The criticized billion-dollar fund to support Donald Trump's allies looks set to be stopped.

Republican Senator John Thune says, according to AFP, that he has discussed the fund with Attorney General Todd Blanche and that they have agreed that the fund will not become a reality.

The fund was established as part of a settlement in which the US president agreed to withdraw his lawsuit against the IRS, which targeted the leaking of his tax returns to the media.

The fund's nearly $1.8 billion was supposed to go to Trump supporters who believe they have been the victims of wrongful investigations and prosecutions – and not least to those convicted of storming the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

But the fund has faced strong criticism, including from Republicans. Late Monday, the Justice Department announced, following a court order, that it was temporarily halting the fund.