Trump to Dole Out $1.8 Billion in Taxpayer Dollars to January 6th Rioters through New Slush Fund

The Trump administration has established a $1.8 billion fund that would compensate individuals who stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 — among them, people convicted of attacking police officers with bats, flagpoles, and bear spray.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche signed the memo creating the "Anti-Weaponization Fund" and directed the Treasury Department to transfer the money within 60 days. The fund will accept claims through December 1, 2028, and a five-member commission appointed by Blanche will review applications. Blanche said "anybody in this country can apply."

Who Stands to Get Tax Payer Money Through the Slush Fund 

The response from January 6 defendants was immediate. Jenny Cudd, who pleaded guilty to misdemeanor trespass, announced that "all J6ers will apply for restitution," saying the news was spreading "all over Twitter [and] our group chats." Jake Lang, who attacked police with a bat during the riot, said he expects rioters to receive "several hundred thousand dollars" or "upwards of a million dollars" depending on their charges. Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys leader who received the longest sentence among January 6 convicts before being pardoned, said through his attorney that he "intends to pursue all relief and remedies available." Tarrio was arrested again for assault shortly after being pardoned, making him one of many rioters who committed another crime after being pardoned.

Other applicants include Adam Johnson, known as the "Lectern Guy," who estimates $255,000 in legal costs, and former Trump administration official Michael Caputo, who is seeking $2.7 million. Mike Lindell, the MyPillow CEO, said he plans to apply on behalf of company employees. An attorney representing January 6 defendants said approximately 400 of his clients may submit claims.

Trump had already pardoned approximately 1,500 people charged in connection with the January 6 attack on his first day back in office, including those convicted of assaulting law enforcement and members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers convicted of seditious conspiracy. More than 140 police officers were injured during the riot; rioters attacked them with firearms, flagpoles, metal whips, bear spray, and hatchets. The compensation fund would now layer financial payment on top of those pardons.

Bipartisan Condemnation of the Fund

The criticism has crossed party lines. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he was "not a big fan" of the fund. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington called it "the most brazen act of self-dealing in the presidency." The fund arrives months after Trump deployed thousands of troops to Los Angeles to police protests, while officials promised imprisonment for anyone who attacked an officer there — a standard applied differently than the pardons and now cash extended to those who attacked police at the Capitol.

Two of the officers who defended the Capitol that day filed a federal lawsuit to block the fund. Daniel Hodges, a D.C. Metropolitan Police officer who was assaulted during the riot, asked:

"Why would you pay people who attacked police at the Capitol?"

Former Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn, now running for Congress in Maryland, joined the suit, which names Blanche, Trump, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as defendants.

The officers' attorney, Brendan Ballou, called the arrangement potentially "the most corrupt act of presidential power in American history." Ballou noted that Trump's earlier mass pardons had already restored gun rights to many January 6 defendants, and the compensation fund would add what he called "a major financial windfall."