A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order on Friday blocking the government from taking any actions to create or distribute money from Donald Trump’s $1.776 billion fund pending a hearing slated for June 12.
U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema said that her order would “ensure that no funds are irreversibly disbursed” until a lawsuit filed by Democracy Forward on behalf of former Jan. 6 prosecutor Andrew Floyd and others is fully adjudicated. Floyd led a task force investigating and prosecuting rioters who assaulted law enforcement.
In a footnote to her order, Brinkema said that a restraining order was necessary because the government refused to refrain from doling out money before the litigation had concluded.
“It is important that the status quo be maintained until plaintiffs’ pending motion has been resolved, especially as plaintiffs allege in their expedited motion that defense counsel ‘was unable ... to provide assurances of how long [the] status quo would last’ and declined plaintiffs’ ‘request that the government commit to not transferring money to the Fund or processing or paying claims until at least June 19 to allow for less compressed briefing in this case,’” the footnote said.
During a 50-minute Substack Live, Legal AF’s Michael Popok noted lawyers for the plaintiff set a “trap” for the federal government to be hoisted by the petard of its own intransigence.
Our Friday week-in-review touched upon the numerous challenges filed against the $1.776 billion fund by Allison Gill, Harry Dunn, and the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. Plus, Congress appears increasingly unlikely to put its seal of approval on Trump’s slush fund. We also discussed former Attorney General Pam Bondi’s closed-door testimony before the House Oversight Committee, the bar complaint against her successor Todd Blanche, and the many defeats and setbacks in their cases: including the Broadview Six and Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
Those losses could easily snowball in light of recent motions filed by journalist Don Lemon and former Milwaukee Judge Hannah Dugan. Read Judge Brinkema’s ruling here, and watch the full conversation at the top of this newsletter.
