Donald Trump's Excuse for Shocking $1.7B MAGA Gift to Jan. 6 Rioters Revealed — 'They've Been Weaponized'
Donald Trump defended a controversial new $1.7billion reimbursement fund for January 6 defendants.
May 19 2026, Published 4:00 p.m. ET
President Donald Trump defended his administration's controversial new $1.7billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund" after facing questions over why taxpayers could end up reimbursing January 6 defendants and MAGA allies, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
During a White House healthcare affordability event on Monday, May 18, Trump insisted the people tied to the Capitol riot were unfairly targeted and claimed many had their lives "destroyed" by the justice system.
Trump Defends Controversial $1.7B Fund
Trump claimed supporters tied to the Capitol riot had been 'horribly treated' by the justice system.
The Justice Department announced the creation of the $1.776billion fund as part of a deal tied to Trump dropping his $10billion lawsuit against the IRS over grievances connected to the 2022 FBI raid on Mar-a-Lago.
The administration claimed the new "Anti-Weaponization Fund" would create a process to compensate Americans who were allegedly targeted through "lawfare" and political prosecutions under the Biden administration.
When asked why taxpayers should cover the costs, Trump insisted the plan had been "very well received."
Trump Says January 6 Defendants Were 'Weaponized'
The president insisted many January 6 defendants were financially ruined by legal battles.
Trump claimed he had little involvement in creating the fund but strongly defended reimbursing those connected to the Capitol riot.
"I wasn't involved in the whole creation of it, and the negotiation. But this is reimbursing people that were horribly treated, horribly treated, it's anti-weaponization. They've been weaponized," Trump said.
The president also argued some January 6 defendants had been "imprisoned wrongly" and financially devastated by legal battles following the riot.
"They paid legal fees that they didn't have. They've gone bankrupt, their lives have been destroyed," he claimed.
Critics Brand Fund a 'Huge Slush Fund'
House Democrats slammed the reimbursement plan as a taxpayer-funded 'slush fund.'
The new reimbursement plan quickly sparked outrage among House Democrats, who accused Trump of creating what they described as an unconstitutional taxpayer-funded payout system for political allies.
Representative Jamie Raskin blasted the settlement in a fiery statement, saying, "This case is nothing but a racket designed to take $1.7billion of taxpayer dollars out of the Treasury and pour it into a huge slush fund for Trump."
He also claimed the money could ultimately benefit "insurrectionists, rioters, and white supremacists."
Ways and Means Ranking Member Richard Neal also slammed the announcement, saying it "only deepens the stench of corruption."
"The American people deserve a government that works for them, not Trump's government by the grifter and for the grifter," Neal added.
Trump Dodges Questions About Who Could Benefit
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Trump refused to say whether he or members of his family could benefit from the fund.
Trump later refused to directly answer whether he or members of his family could personally seek compensation from the new fund.
"A committee is being set up of very talented people, very highly respected people," Trump said. "And again, I didn't do this deal. It was told to me yesterday."
The president added that a panel of "four or five people" would decide who receives payments from the reimbursement program.
The controversy comes after Trump granted clemency to nearly 1,600 people charged in connection with the January 6 Capitol riot during the opening days of his second term in office.
