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Updated on: June 1, 2026 / 4:04 PM EDT
/ CBS News
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Washington — The Justice Department said Monday that it will stop work on the $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund following a district judge's decision temporarily blocking the establishment of the program.The move comes after the plan earned intense pushback from Republicans in Congress that threatened to imperil the GOP agenda on Capitol Hill.The Justice Department said on X that it would abide by the judge's ruling that halted work on the fund, effectively shelving plans for it for now."The Department of Justice disagrees strongly with the decision on the Anti-Weaponization Fund put forth by the United States District Court Judge in the Eastern District of Virginia, wherein the Court stated that, under no circumstances, may the Department of Justice proceed with the Anti-Weaponization Fund recently established in order to make up for the tremendous abuse, harm, and hate unfairly shown to so many people," the department said on X. It continued: "This Fund was open to anybody who was so weaponized, targeted, or persecuted, whether they were Democrat, Republican, Conservative, Independent, or otherwise. The Department will abide by the Court's ruling."U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema issued an order on Friday that temporarily prevents the Justice Department from moving forward with the fund to "ensure that no funds are irreversibly disbursed" from it while she considered whether to issue longer-term relief.Brinkema is overseeing a lawsuit brought by a former federal prosecutor who was involved in cases stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol, and several other plaintiffs. Her order prohibits the Justice Department from "taking any further action pursuant to the creation or operation" of the program for now, including transferring money to the fund, considering any claims submitted and disbursing any payments. A hearing is set for June 12.
