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Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett on Tuesday introduced legislation aimed at preventing taxpayer dollars from being used to finance settlements, compensation programs or legal payouts benefiting President Donald Trump, his associates or participants in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack.
The bill, titled the Stop Taxpayer-funded Reimbursement for Unlawful Misconduct by Presidents Act — or STOP TRUMP Act — comes amid mounting controversy surrounding the Trump administration’s recently announced $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization” fund. The administration says the fund is intended to compensate individuals who claim they were unfairly targeted by the federal government under prior administrations.
Crockett said the legislation is designed to prevent what she described as an abuse of taxpayer money for political purposes.
“Working families are struggling to afford groceries, gas, rent, and healthcare — the last thing taxpayers should be forced to do is bankroll political revenge tours and payouts for Donald Trump and his cronies,” Crockett said in a statement. “This bill makes it clear that taxpayer dollars are not a personal slush fund for presidents, political loyalists, or extremists who participated in an attack on our democracy.”
The proposal would prohibit federal funds — including money from the federal Judgment Fund — from being used to settle or pay claims tied to alleged “government weaponization” involving a president, presidential family members, political appointees, affiliated organizations or Jan. 6 defendants.
The legislation would also ban the creation of taxpayer-funded compensation commissions or reimbursement programs intended to financially benefit political allies.
In addition, the bill would block the Justice Department from representing cases in which the president could personally or politically benefit from a financial settlement.
The bill follows backlash over the Trump administration’s settlement agreement tied to lawsuits Trump filed against the federal government regarding investigations into his taxes, the 2022 FBI search of Mar-a-Lago and other matters.
Democrats and government ethics watchdogs have sharply criticized the administration’s compensation fund, arguing it could serve as a mechanism to direct taxpayer money toward Trump allies and supporters. Republicans have also expressed concerns in recent days about the structure and oversight of the program.
The White House and Justice Department have defended the fund as a lawful process intended to compensate individuals harmed by what Trump officials describe as politically motivated investigations and prosecutions.
