Mike Lindell and Proud Boys Leader Seek Trump ‘Anti-Weaponization' Payouts

Several prominent supporters of President Donald Trump have said they will be applying for compensation through the Department of Justice's newly launched “Anti-Weaponization” fund.

The $1.8 billion fund was created “in exchange” for Trump and members of his family dropping a $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) over the unauthorized disclosure of his tax returns, according to the DOJ. The funds will be used to pay individuals who are able to prove that they were victims of government “weaponization,” and several have already expressed interest in seeking redress.

Mike Lindell, the CEO of MyPillow and a leading advocate of Trump's claim that the 2020 election was stolen, has said he plans to pursue compensation through the fund, arguing that his company lost $400 million because of perceived government weaponization.

Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys leader who was sentenced ‌to 22 years for “seditious conspiracy” in relation to the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol-but pardoned by Trump last year-told the Miami New Times that he would “definitely” be applying for compensation, and told Reuters he believes his claim could be worth between $2 million and $5 million.

Newsweek has contacted the Justice Department via email outside of regular hours for comment.

What Is the Anti-Weaponization Fund?

The creation of the fund was announced on Monday by the Justice Department, which said it will “provide a systematic process to hear and redress claims of others who suffered weaponization and lawfare.”

Trump and many of his allies have accused former President Joe Biden of utilizing the executive branch, specifically the Justice Department, to target them through investigations and prosecutions-many tied to the 2020 election and subsequent January 6 riots.

The fund would have the authority to issue “formal apologies and monetary relief” to claimants, according to the DOJ, which said that anyone may submit a voluntary claim and that there are “no partisan requirements.” Payments would be made through the Judgment Fund, a permanent, taxpayer-funded account in the U.S. Treasury used to pay legal claims against the federal government.

“The machinery of government should never be weaponized against any American, and it is this Department's intention to make right the wrongs that were previously done while ensuring this never happens again,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Monday. “As part of this settlement, we are setting up a lawful process for victims of lawfare and weaponization to be heard and seek redress.”

Blanche has said that payouts will be determined by a five-member commission, with four members appointed by the acting attorney general himself and one selected via consultation with Congress.

Who Is Applying for the Fund?

“Anybody in this country is eligible to apply,” Blanche told lawmakers during a Senate hearing on Tuesday, stressing that the fund is “not limited in any way, scope or form” to January 6 or former DOJ Special Counsel Jack Smith, who spearheaded two criminal investigations into Trump.

On Wednesday, Michael Caputo filed the first known claim, requesting $2.7 million for his family whom he described as “survivors of the illegal Russiagate investigations.” In a letter sent to Blanche and posted on X, Caputo, assistant secretary of public affairs in the Department of Health and Human Services during Trump’s first term, said that he had been the target of criminal investigations into the president's 2016 campaign as well as his own efforts to expose “Biden corruption in Ukraine.”

Separately, a lawyer for the pro-Trump channel One America News (OAN) told CNN that it was “seriously considering pursuing rights under this fund.” From 2020 onward, OAN was dropped by major networks over its promotion of conspiracy theories tied to the 2020 election as well as the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition to several January 6 rioters, The WashingtonPost reports that former Representative George Santos, whose sentence for wire fraud and identity theft Trump commuted in October, is thinking of applying. However, Santos said he was seeking an apology rather than financial restitution.

Other Trump supporters have criticized the fund or said they are concerned that pursuing financial compensation could complicate their ongoing legal cases.

Jacob Chansley, known as the “QAnon Shaman,” said he would not “take a dime” from the government, and described the fund as “blood money” in an interview with Cronkite News.

Barry ‌Ramey, a member of the Proud Boys who was originally sentenced to five years in prison for assaulting police officers during the January 6 attack, told Reuters accepting the payout could undermine his claim against the Bureau of Prisons.

And the fund has been roundly criticized by Democrats as well as several Republican members of Congress as a “slush fund” designed to reward Trump's most loyal allies.

On Tuesday, two police officers who were at the Capitol on January 6 sued the administration in an attempt to block the fund.

“President Donald J. Trump has created a $1.776 billion taxpayer-funded slush fund to finance the insurrectionists and paramilitary groups that commit violence in his name,” their complaint reads.

Legal experts have been similarly skeptical over the precedent and scope of the new fund, and former federal prosecutors told CNBC that Congress has several mechanisms to challenge the use of taxpayer money for the payouts.

In response, the Department of Justice has pointed to what is says are comparable initiatives during past administrations, specifically a $760 million fund established under former President Barack Obama that was used to compensate Native American farmers who faced discrimination by the Department of Agriculture.

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