DOJ asks court to reject lawsuits against "anti-weaponization fund" because Blanche said program isn't going forward

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June 5, 2026 / 5:03 PM EDT

/ CBS News

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Washington — The Justice Department on Friday urged a pair of federal judges to reject efforts to block its $1.7 billion "anti-weaponization fund," arguing that the cases challenging the program are moot because of Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's assertions that the fund is not going forward.In two filings with federal courts in Alexandria, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., senior officials with the Justice Department wrote that two sets of plaintiffs challenging the fund do not have the legal right to sue, and said there is no longer a live issue before the court."This dispute concerns an Anti-Weaponization Fund that had not been set up and is now not going forward. As a result, Plaintiffs' claims are not justiciable," the Justice Department wrote in both filings, which were signed by Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward and Andrew Block, his senior counsel.This is a breaking story; it will be updated.